A Gift and a Curse
by FutureYandere6
Summary: When a new girl transfers to Duel Academy, everyone is drawn to her appearance. She seems harmless, but her backstory says otherwise, having a rough childhood, and having unusual parents, she comes to seek help. Jaden, Jesse, and Aster come to her aid, not knowing that they have put themselves in great danger. Who exactly is this new girl? (Rated M for very obvious reasons)
1. Prologue

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Prologue**

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters and settings, I do own the character Angelica Rose though. Also, there aren't many major references, or any at all, but there will be some yaoi(boyxboy)and romance in the near future. So be aware. Please don't hate me if the storyline or the characters seem off I was kinda tired while writing this so forgive me.  
Try not to get confused with the speaking!  
||...|| Someone talking in someone's mind  
|...| Flashback talking  
"..." Regular talking  
'...' Thoughts  
Finally, this takes place after the whole business with Yubel and the different dimension thing, and in this universe, Jaden is still the same as he was before, just takes things more seriously when it comes to dark magic and duels with really high stakes. Everyone from the different academies are still hanging out at Duel Academy cause why not. Even Adrien(yes, Adrien).

*pant* wooh! With that out of the way, let's get started!

* * *

*In a parallel world*  
"Duel Academy? It sounds fun but...I can't let what happened years ago happen again, especially to a place like this..."

|| Hehe...oh please, I wouldn't hurt the certain people over there, haven't you heard of what happened a while ago? The whole damn school got transported to a different dimension for crying out loud! ||

"I didn't ask for your opinion, and I don't trust you one bit you hear me?"

|| Tsk...you're lucky that I can't lay a finger on you. But I still have your weak points to look toward to. ||

"Leave me alone!"

|| Hmph, fine then, I was just going to leave anyway. ||

Silence.

"Why...why'd it have to be me?"

Angelica Rose, who was just sitting on a sofa and was looking through the news stood up, and made her way out of...wherever she was, and came through a brick wall that was located near an alleyway. There she took a deep breath, and looked up at the clear blue sky.

"There are lots of duelists who can see duel monster spirits in Duel Academy, like the infamous Jaden Yuki I've heard so much about, then there's Chazz Princeton and Jesse Anderson. But there is also someone there who would talk about destiny..." She paused and smiled to herself.

"Aster Phoenix, the pro league duelist. I wonder..." Angelica looked down at the necklace with the black jewel that hanged around her neck. "...if any of them can help me, but what if they don't understand? I haven't had a real friend in so long, how will I react? I guess...I'll just have to find out and hopefully..." she paused again as a black hole appeared before her and she began to walk through, "...hopefully no one will get hurt..."

* * *

*Many tests later*

"Well Ms. Rose your dueling skills are excellent not to mention your grades are stellar!" Crowler exclaimed, "You definitely passed, and your dorm will be the Ra yellow dorm."

"Thank you!" Angelica replied excitedly, "I promise to be one of the best duelists there is!"

And with a bright smile on her face to said goodbye and left. But what Crowler did not see was the sudden change in Angelica's mood, because someone had begun talking to her again.

|| Not a bad color, but I did want the Obelisk Blue... ||

"Shut up! No one asked you!" Angelica immediately became very angry and clenched her fists.

|| Hmmm...should I take that as an invitation to get rid of that annoying Dr. Crowler then? It has been a while you know. || The voice snickered as it said this.

"No! Don't!" Angelica cried, and soon calmed herself down and began walking again. "Just for once can you let it go? He doesn't deserve any punishment."

|| Whatever, you're never any fun. || And with that the voice left and Angelica sadly sighed as she entered her unusual home, it wasn't a small house, but it was actually pretty big, but Angelica still always felt lonely, no matter what she did to forget about it. She went in her room and shut the door, dropping off her Ra Yellow uniform, her bracelet, and her necklace onto a nearby desk, and got dressed to go to bed, and before laying on the bed, she looked out the window to view all the stars that lit up the night. She thought about the night, and it reminded her of what happened to her adopted family, and the school she used to go to back then, and prayed the same things wouldn't happen to Duel Academy.

"Not again...please...not again..." those were the words she said before drifting off into sleep. Not knowing what event would unfold once she came to Academy Island. And the people she would encounter that would change her life forever.


	2. Chapter 1

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 1**

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters except Angelica Rose blah blah blah.  
"..." Talking  
'...'Thoughts  
||...|| Talking in the someone's mind  
|...| Flashback talking  
On with the chapter!

* * *

It was just any ordinary day at Duel Academy, Jaden was hanging out at the Slifer Red dorm with all his friends playing Duel Monsters, since it wouldn't be a while till Jesse, Jim, and Axel went back to their schools, they decided to hang out with them till they had to go back. Adrien went back to his own home since he didn't want to spend another minute back at Duel Academy. Zane had stayed in the academy hospital for a while and it would be for a few more days. So there everyone was, sitting in the dorm laughing and playing around until...

"GUYS! YOU WONT BELIEVE THIS!"

Everyone yelped as Bastion came bursting through the door yelling at the top of his lungs. Chazz was the first one to speak.  
"Jeez, can you yell any louder? We're all in front of your face you." he sneered

"Yeah man just calm down and tell us what happened." Jaden said as he and everyone else got up from where they were and walked over to Bastion's side

"So what's got you all worked up?" Jesse asked.

"Well...there's a new student coming into the Ra yellow dorm, I haven't seen this person yet but from what I've heard, it's a girl, and apparently she's one of the best students there are. Even Crowler has already taken a liking to her." Bastion explained, at this point everyone was all ears to the situation.

"Wow, that's pretty rare for someone like Crowler..." Syrus said, "Not to mention we haven't had a girl transfer in a while, I wonder what she looks like." Atticus, who was standing behind Alexis, smirked at this comment.

"What are you going to do Syrus? Ask for her number?" Everyone laughed at this, and Syrus turned to him red faced. "Why in the world would I do that?!" he yelled, clearly embarrassed.

"Anyway..." Alexis said, changing the subject and trying to prevent another catastrophe of Syrus ranting on about Dark Magician Girl again, "when will we see this new girl?"

"Yeah!" Jaden exclaimed, "I'm dying to meet her! She sounds like a great duelist!"

Jim sighed, "I hear you mate," he started, "but from what I've heard about this school and what has happened before, this could probably be some other maniac trying to take over the world or something."

Everyone's face turned into concern, "You might be right soldier," Hassleberry said, "like what happened a while back when Aster came here and then the Society of Light followed him. Uhhh...no offense" He looked at Aster who was leaning against a wall, and listening to the entire conversation.

"Nah, none taken." Aster replied. There was a bit of silence before Jesse looked around and started to speak.

"Well all we can do is hope that she isn't like that," he said, "and if something does turn up, then we'll just have to deal with it together all right?" everyone nodded as they made their way to the announcement room. But halfway there, Jaden nudged at Jesse's arm.

"What's up Jay?" he asked.

"Well..." Jaden hesitated, "I'm really worried about something." Jesse blinked in confusion but became concerned when he saw Jaden's eyes showing fear, even his voice was mixed with it.

"What? Is something wrong?" Jesse asked again. Jaden looked down and began to find the right words to say.

"It's just that...I'm afraid that this girl will be bad, and that she might be after...me..." Jesse's eyes widened as he heard this. Sure evil people are always going after Jaden, but he never heard him admit it, and not while sounding so guilty either. Jesse turned around to face Jaden and grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. Jaden looked at him with a surprised expression on his face.

"Look, first of all, we even don't know if this girl is bad or not," Jesse remarked, sounding stern but he also had a hint of worry in the way he spoke, "and secondly, even if she wanted to get at you for whatever grudge she might have, I won't let you out of my sight again, you hear me?" Jaden smiled and squeezed Jesse's hand back.

"Loud and clear Jess, thank you." Jesse smiled back.

"Anytime, Jay. Anytime"

* * *

*Meanwhile*

Angelica was pacing back and forth behind the school building, thinking if she was willing to do this or not.

'Maybe I should just leave...' she thought, 'Maybe it would be better to not join this school, the people here have already been through enough, I'm just another problem! And—' her thoughts were interrupted when a familiar voice came in her mind

||You know...if you keep thinking, you'll just end up wasting time, just go in already. This academy seems like a fun place to be in...|| the voice chuckled as Angelica became furious again.

"You're the reason I don't want to come here in the first place!" she yelled. And as she began to walk away from the island. She stopped as she heard the voice again.

||If you don't wanna join this academy...then I'll just have to do the same thing that I did last time...||  
Angelica instantly became filled with fear as she heard that, and the images of what happened that night came rushing back.

"No!" she cried, "Alright, I'll join the academy!"

The voice snickered ||A wise decision...||

* * *

*Back to Jaden and the rest of the gang*

Jaden and Jesse both began walking again towards the announcement room and caught up with everyone else. Once they got inside, they were met up with crowds of people who were whispering about the new transfer student, when everyone sat down in a seat, they watched as Dr. Crowler and Chancellor Sheppard stepped onto the platform and looked around at all the students in the room.

"Students!" Chancellor Sheppard began, "I am pleased to welcome a new duelist in our school, she has shown the most excellent grades and dueling skills I've seen in quite a while. So I hope you all help her feel welcome at Duel Academy. As you know, we are always accepting new faces and hope that you all graduate with pride. Now, I leave the rest to Dr. Crowler." Sheppard stepped back as Crowler stepped in front.

"Ahem!" he cleared his throat, "Now! Without further ado...I am proud to announce our new student that will be joining the Ra Yellow dorm. Please welcome...Angelica Rose!"

Everyone gasped.

Angelica was utterly perfect. Long, flowing white/silver hair that had streaks of red, blue, green, and pure white. Pale skin that looked radiant and smooth, her eye was a beautiful light blue-ish/green-ish color and sparkled like the ocean in the light, and her smile that shined brighter than the sun. Everyone was in aw. They were admiring how beautiful she looked that they were broken out of the staring when she began to speak.

"I really look forward to being here! I hope that this will be a great year!"

Everyone was shocked again when they heard her voice. Angelica really lived up to her name, because her voice sounded like it belonged to a real angel. As if she were sent down by the gods themselves. But someone specific in the room was in a trance, and it was Aster Phoenix. He had never seen someone so perfect before, and just by hearing Angelica speak only a few words, he was able to tell that her personality was great also. He just wondered how he never came across someone like her, someone who was probably sent down from heaven as a blessing to the world. Aster just stared, not realizing that something new sparked inside him, something he had never felt before, something that can only be set off by Angelica, and no one else.

Jaden was looking at every detail about her, from her tone of voice to her bright smile, the glimmer in her eye to her shining jewelry. There seemed to be nothing wrong, except...

"Jay, how can someone as perfect as her possibly be evil?" Jesse whispered, "Just look at her, for crying out loud she got the whole school swooning over her already!" he looked around to see everyone still admiring her, and didn't notice anything else. But Jaden did. There was something off about her. Like a powerful aura radiating from her, and Jaden has a hunch it comes from her necklace and her bracelet. Even the covered eye seemed off.  
'Am I being paranoid?' he thought

"Umm...Jaden? You still in there?"

Jaden was snapped back to reality by Jesse calling to him. "Yeah! Yeah! Sorry for spacing out like that! I was just thinking about—" he couldn't finish his sentence because it seemed that someone else was curious, too. Some person from the crowd in Obelisk Blue stood up and asked,  
"Hey! What's up with your left eye? Why's it covered like that?"

Everyone froze and looked at Angelica again, before whispering while constantly glancing at her with different expressions. Jaden, Jesse, and Aster then noticed Angelica's change, her eye began to lose its sparkle and she started looking sad and fidgeted with the scarf that was tied around her neck. They started to feel bad and Aster was the one to speak up.

"What's with you? You don't just ask someone that so casually, if they don't answer then they don't wanna talk about alright?" Aster scolded, the Obelisk blue student sat back down in his seat with a grunt.

Angelica looked at Aster with a thankful smile and mouthed the words, "Thank you." Aster got the message and smiled back.

'Aster Phoenix...' she thought, '...he looks...nice...and kind...' she looked into Aster's eyes and almost got lost in the deep blue color before focusing back. She saw what he went through, as well as what he has done that makes him who he is. Her smile grew brighter.

On Aster's side, he didn't know what Angelica was doing, but he felt two feelings. One was that he felt something inside him tingling, like if Angelica was looking right through him. The second was that he felt his face heat up and his heart beat faster as Angelica smiled warmly and continued to stare.  
'Her eye looks so beautiful...' Aster thought, '...she just seems so perfect...Angelica...what a great name she has too...Wait, why am I thinking like this? I barely just met her!' Aster stopped thinking and continued to look at Angelica, not noticing that he had a blush on his cheeks. Although Aster didn't notice this, Atticus did(obviously), and he looked back at the group to tell them.

"Hey guys," Atticus called, they turned to his direction and began to listen, "I'm pretty sure someone has already developed a crush on her."

"I think it's pretty obvious by now." Axel stated. Atticus just shook his head.

"I mean him." Atticus pointed his thumb towards Aster, who was still in his own world, blushing visibly, but no one was paying attention to Aster except his friends.

"Well that's something I didn't see coming," Chazz said, "I mean, I know she's pretty and all that, but look at the way they're staring at each other." They looked back at the two and nodded.

"I know," Jaden agreed, "and Angelica seems to like Aster more than anyone else here, but she's staring at him a little bit differently..."

"Whaddya mean?" Jesse asked.

"There's just something off about her." Jaden narrowed his eyes. "I can't put my finger on it, but it's something weird, like if she isn't human..."

"I'm pretty sure you're just overthinking things Jay," Syrus said, "do you really think she's dangerous, cause it doesn't seem like it." Jaden sighed and looked back at Angelica, who had stopped staring at Aster and turned her attention back to the room she looked around and smiled even though people were still whispering about her.

"Alright! Alright! Settle down!" Crowler ordered, everyone immediately stopped whispering and looked back at him. "Now then...I'd like three students to give Ms. Rose here a little tour of the academy."  
Everyone(especially the male students)became very interested and waited for Crowler to make his choice.  
"Hmmmm...how about... Jaden Yuki, Jesse Anderson, and Aster Phoenix. Please show our new student here where everything is located, the rest of you can go back to your dorms." Some people groaned and said "aw" as they exited the room, everyone left until it was just Angelica, and the three boys.

* * *

Author's Note:

Shoutout to presea221 for the review!

Glad that you like it! And yes, there aren't enough Aster Phoenix stories out there! I love yaoi too, but I just felt that Angelica would be his soulmate!

Criticism is welcome. I'm not really the best at some stuff.

Byyyeeee~


	3. Chapter 2

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 2**

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters, except Angelica Rose. Settings don't belong to me either.  
(Believe me, if I did own it, it would be pure duels of romance and yaoi.)But I don't.  
"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirits talking(in mind or out)

Enjoy the second chapter!

* * *

A few seconds passed by and Angelica looked at the three boys in front of her. Jaden, excited as ever, was the first to say something.

"Well, welcome to Duel Academy!" he cheered, like a child greeting the new kid. "If you don't know already, I'm—"

"It's alright Jaden," Angelica interrupted, "you don't have to introduce yourselves, I already know who all of you are." She looked at Jesse, "You're Jesse Anderson,"  
She looked at Aster again and smiled, Aster's breath got caught in his throat and started to blush again, Angelica just chuckled, "and you're Aster Phoenix, right?"

"Y-Yeah!" Aster stuttered, feeling a bit awkward. Jesse grinned at Angelica.

"Well I guess we're famous huh?" he said casually. Angelica laughed again.

"Yup!"

"Oh by the way Angelica..." Jaden said walking towards her. "Can I see your deck? I wanna see what cards you have!"

Angelica looked and then shook her head. "Not right now, how about this," she said, "after the tour, we can duel, and you'll be able to see my deck. Sound good?"

"Good? It sounds awesome!" Jaden exclaimed, "I can't wait!" As the four of them started walking around the school. Someone stopped them, or one of them at least

||Wait Jaden|| Yubel appeared beside him in her spirit form. Everyone stopped as Jaden did as they noticed Yubel floating there. Jesse looked a bit shocked, since Yubel doesn't usually come out suddenly. Also, he still kinda didn't like Yubel after what happened in the other dimensions. Aster, who was able to see Yubel because of the same incident, became a bit nervous that she would lash out at someone.

"What is it Yubel?" Jaden turned his head to see Yubel narrowing her eyes as Angelica noticed her presence. Winged Kuriboh and Ruby Carbuncle showed up as well.

"Are they your friends?" Angelica asked, looking at Yubel as if she were any normal human. Jaden looked at her with a shocked face. So did Jesse and Aster.

"Wait what?!" Jaden yelled, still surprised, "You can see spirits too?!"

Angelica looked back at the boys and nodded, "For as long as I can remember, I've been able to see them, everyone thought I was crazy, so I just stopped talking about it with anyone." She smiled, "But I'm glad I'm not the only one."

"Hold up..." Jesse said as a thought crossed his mind, "...if you can see duel spirits, don't you have some as well? I mean, I got my Crystal Beasts, and Jaden's got his Neo-Spacians, what about you?" Everyone turned to Angelica curiously and waited for her answer. She smiled and closed her eye.

"It's alright, they mean no harm, you can show yourselves." she said, and as she did, four spirits appeared behind her. Each contrasting from the other. They all looked like royalty, and were all female too. The one that had angel wings, pure grey eyes, and that was wearing grey, white, and gold clothing showed a normal smile, and looked very wise, the one who had a mermaid tail, ocean blue eyes, and blue fluid-looking wings was wearing all sorts of shades of blue, showed a wide smile and had a very excited and childish expression. The one with green eyes, wore shades of green and had flowers on her head, as well as wings that looked like leaves, had a warm smile and kind eyes. Finally, the last one had blood-red eyes, had wings that were made of fire, and a ragged cape as well as her red and orange attire, not to mention the sort of angry expression on her face. They all had weapons and wands that corresponded with their powers, and were literally out of this world.

Everyone looked at the four spirits with adoring faces.

"Well I'll be..." Jesse breathed, not being able to say any more. Yubel even looked a bit shocked at what she was seeing.

||I didn't know that they existed...|| she whispered, Jaden slowly nodded in response.

"Me either..." he said slowly, his shocked expression quickly turned into a really excited and energetic one. "This is so cool!" he exclaimed.

"I'm know this is pretty obvious but..." Aster said, looking at Angelica again, "...they represent the four main elements, don't they." Angelica smiled and nodded, knowing that the boys and the spirits have never seen the four young ladies before, actually, they never should have till now, since they weren't original Duel Monsters.

"That's right!" Angelica said, looking very pleased that they weren't freaked out and yelling some random nonsense, "If it's not clear, they are goddesses of Earth, Fire, Air, and Water." They all "wowed" again and kept admiring the spirits, while Winged Kuriboh and Ruby Carbuncle were going around them, and playing around with the four goddesses. The three boys chuckled at this, but Yubel still felt a bit uncertain, if they really were Duel Monsters, then why hasn't she ever heard of them, and they didn't exist in the Spirit World either, so where did they come from? She shook the thoughts out of her head. If her prince was fine with it, then she should be fine as well. But she kept floating beside Jaden as the four of them started walking again just in case.

* * *

After they had introduced Angelica to a few areas, they came to a lake to rest and look around. Jesse and Jaden leaned against a tree and were talking about where to go next. Angelica went to sit down in front of the lake and smiled at how pure and clean the water was.

Aster looked at Angelica and smiled when he saw the happy and peaceful look she had while looking at the lake. It just made him wonder even more how he had never met her before, and how utterly amazing she was, inside and out. But then something caught his attention, her expression changed completely and her eye became filled with anger, Aster instantly became worried and cleared his throat in order to get the other two boy's attention. They turned to look at him, who then motioned his head towards Angelica's direction. As they looked at her, they saw what was wrong, how angry she looked as she looked in the lake, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth. Because inside Angelica's head, someone was calling to her, and she knew exactly who it was.

||Maybe this would be a great time to show those new friends of yours a few tricks...don't you think?|| a familiar voice echoed in her mind, sounding as sinister as ever.

"There is no way in hell I'm doing that, cause it'll give you a chance to kill them." she sneered, the three boys didn't hear her that much, but they did hear her say "kill" and that got them worried, but they stayed quiet.

||Exactly, but since you won't do it. I'll just have to break through and kill them with my own hands...oh and how fun it will be!|| the voice laughed as Angelica felt herself become infuriated.

"Over my dead body!" she scolded, not knowing that the teens were staring at her as if she were insane. The voice did notice though, and laughed again as it faded away. Angelica gasped and turned around to see the three staring at her, waiting for her to explain. She looked like she was on the verge of tears. Aster noticed this and quickly changed the subject, "Uhh...it's alright, we didn't hear anything, we were just worried cause you looked really frustrated at something." He glared at Jaden and Jesse, they nodded in response.

"Yeah, I mean, I don't think it's normal for someone to look into a lake and become angry out of nowhere." Jesse said, trying not to bring up the point where they heard her scolding at nothing.

"I..." Angelica hesitated, she couldn't figure out what to say, one of her lame excuses wouldn't work this time, especially on these three, "It isn't bad...I just had a lot on my mind...and looking at the lake just...I don't know...reminded me of something..." she hung her head low so her bangs covered her eyes, and the others couldn't see her face, but they knew that Angelica didn't want to talk about it, since they just met her, they couldn't expect her to open up about certain things. So they all dropped the subject.

Then, something came to Jaden's mind while looking at the lake, "I was thinking Angelica..." he said, hoping to get rid of the awkward silence, "...when did you get your spirit monsters? I'm a bit curious."

Angelica finally looked up and blinked in confusion before thinking about it.

"Now that I realize it..." Aster spoke, thinking about the four goddesses again, "...they don't look like any Duel Monsters, and I've never heard of any goddesses of the four elements. How long have you had them?"

Angelica paused, she was never really asked that question often, since all people asked about were her eye and her strange jewelry. She hasn't met anyone else who could see spirits other than these three and Chazz. But it wasn't hard to answer, she just was surprised at the sudden curiosity. So she obliged and told them.

"Well..." she began, "...at first, they weren't Duel Monsters, they are actually still a part of my soul..." everyone gasped at this, and she continued, "...they were born when I was, I never really knew why, I couldn't ask anyone about it either..."

"What about your parents?" Aster asked. Angelica had a sad look on her face and hung her head low so her bangs would cover her eye again. Aster mentally slapped himself when he noticed this. 'Great...way to go Aster...' he scolded himself, '...why did I ask such a stupid question like that? Of course she isn't going to say anything! Dammit, I screwed up.'

"I-I'm sorry!" Aster quickly tried to take back what he said, "Y-You don't have to—"

"It's fine really..." Angelica interrupted, still hanging her head low, "...I trust you guys...you see...I was adopted and...well... my adopted parents weren't the kindest people in the world..." she trailed off, fearing that if she continued, she would break down.

The boys just looked at her, not wanting to say anything and push her too far. They were shocked that someone like her would have a bad childhood. Aster slowly walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder. She finally looked up, only to show her eye sparkling, but not with happiness, it was sparkling with tears, tears that could come flooding out at any moment.

"You don't have to tell us," Aster assured softly, "if you don't wanna talk about it, then you don't have to."

Angelica stayed silent, then shook her head. "It would be better if I told you right now. I don't want to be bothered about it by your friends later on, I know they can be curious too. Especially Chazz, I've heard he can be a bit harsh sometimes." she lightly chuckled, and so did the boys.

"That's Chazz for yah," Jaden said, "always got a cold heart."

"Not with Alexis" Jesse pointed out, they all began to laugh again.

"So..." Aster looked back at Angelica again, who nodded as she knew what he was thinking.

"Let's go somewhere else then." Angelica said, they all nodded and Jaden began to lead them out of the little area and into the forest.

* * *

Most of the way, they stayed silent, the sun was still a bit high in the sky, since it was still noon. Jaden and Jesse were walking ahead, occasionally talking about certain things, and about their spirits. Aster and Angelica were a few feet behind, looking around and staying silent. Angelica wanted to break the silence, so she faced Aster and began to ask a few questions.

"So Aster...you play with Destiny Heroes, right?" she asked, knowing pretty much everything about Aster already, but wanted to hear what he would say about it.

"Y-Yeah I do." the boy stuttered, and tried to control himself, but he felt something growing warm on the inside. "I've always had Destiny Heroes in my deck, because they represent justice and they control other peoples' destinies."

"I see," Angelica replied, "umm...this may be out of the blue but...are peoples' destinies always set in stone?" Aster blinked, he had no idea why Angelica would ask such a serious yet weird question. 'Why does she want to know about destiny?' he thought, still confused, 'I mean, did someone tell her something about her destiny, cause if so, she's probably worried about it.'

Angelica sighed, she knew it was stupid to ask him something like that. But she had to try.

"W-Well..." Aster said, trying to think of what to say, "...I...used to think that, but ever since I met Jaden, it changed my knowledge of destiny. I always thought that everyone's lives were predetermined by destiny and that no one was able to overcome it. But Jaden proved me wrong, because he was able to change his destiny. So...I guess no, no one's destiny is set in stone, if you work hard enough and have the power to do it...you can change your fate."

"Oh..." Angelica said, part of her wanted to believe that, but at the same time she couldn't, because she knew that it was already too late to change her destiny, and it was a horrible one at that. One that her real parents knew from the start. She looked down at the ground and became depressed just at the thought of it. Aster looked at her face and felt his heart constrict at the sight of her really sad state. He wondered what had made her so down.

"Why...did you ask? Are you alright?" he said softly, and took her hand in his, trying to comfort her. Angelica looked into Aster's concerned face and blushed as she forced a smile. 'His hand feels really warm...' she thought, '...but I can't possibly tell him the truth, he would hate me for it.'

"I-I'm fine, really, it was just a question." she said, trying to sound as sincere as possible. Aster wasn't buying it, but he decided to let it go, and they started to catch up to the two boys in front. Then the voice came back to Angelica's mind and spoke to her.

||Hahaha...oh please...there's no way to change your destiny, you've tried before...but failed. You may not be able to remember, but I do. I've seen everything. There's no way to change you're pathetic fate, so stop trying.|| the menacing voice laughed and faded away into the deepest part of Angelica's mind again. She squeezed Aster's hand in fear and frustration, which took him by surprise. After a few seconds, she loosened her grip and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry...did I hurt your hand?" she asked, sounding guilty, which made Aster reconsider what he was about to ask her. Instead, he just assured her that he was fine.

"N-No it's alright...it didn't hurt that much." he showed his own warm smile, which made Angelica blush again.  
"A-Alright." she stuttered, and they continued to follow Jaden and Jesse, while still holding each other's hands.

* * *

During the conversation that Aster and Angelica were having, Yubel was floating beside the two boys in front, and was talking about what they heard at the lake.

||It isn't common for people's souls to be tied to spirits at birth.|| Yubel said, ||She said that they weren't Duel Monsters at first, that they are still a part of her soul. But how does she know this? If her real parents didn't tell her, and her adopted parents weren't very nice and probably had no idea, then how does she know of these goddesses?||

"It is kinda strange..." Jesse said, still concerned about what happened in Angelica's childhood. "...but speaking about her parents, she said that they weren't very kind...do you think they abused her?"

"That's horrible though..." Jaden said, sounding really upset, "...she's so nice, it's really hard to believe that...usually people who were abused as a kid would have so much hatred in them, but she doesn't show any of that..."

"What about what she blurted out at the lake?" Jesse pointed out, "I don't think screaming out 'over my dead body' is a very good thing, and hearing it from someone like her is even more disturbing."

||She wasn't talking to herself...|| Yubel sighed, ||...someone in her mind was...but it's was a different presence, it wasn't one of her element goddesses. It sent out some really weird energy too, I've never felt anything like it.||

"But if she refuses to bring it up..." the brunette said, "...then that's something she really doesn't want to talk about, it must be a lot to handle for her. The voice mentioned 'kill'...maybe it threatened her...or us..." Jaden didn't continue, just the thought of his friends getting hurt again sent shivers of fear down his spine. Jesse saw this and held the boy's hand. Jaden slightly blushed and looked at the blunette.

"Hey, it's going to be ok Jay..." Jesse told him in a comforting voice, "...we're going to have to trust her, because she trusts us enough to tell us about her parents, right? I don't think she's the type to open up about things this personal so quickly, so let's just listen to what she has to say. Then we can decide on what to do."

Jaden nodded and smiled, "Alright Jess, if you say so...let's go."

Jesse smiled back and they continued to walk through the forest.

* * *

They had passed through the Obelisk and Slifer dorms and walked toward the Ra yellow dorm. They entered inside and stopped at the entrance, looking around.

"Hey, Angelica, you know where your room is right?" Jaden asked, Angelica nodded in response.

"Yeah, it's this way." she said, leading them through a few corridors and arriving at a door that had the number 13 on it. 'Great...' Angelica thought, '...how convenient...' she opened the door and sat down on the bed, while Jaden and Jesse brought up two chairs to sit on. And Aster decided to sit beside Angelica on the bed.

"So...are you sure you wanna tell us? You really don't have to..." Aster asked again. Angelica smiled weakly and nodded.

"I'm sure..." she said, "...I really trust you guys, you three are really great people. And if you want to tell your friends, then...it's fine. Just make sure that no one else knows about this, alright?" the boys nodded in agreement.

"Where do I start..."

* * *

Author's Note:

OMG cliffhanger LOL  
Oh well, I think this is enough for now. Sorry!

I just happen to love Spiritshipping, don't judge! At least I don't go all gaga...like someone I know...*cough*weirdfriend*cough*


	4. Chapter 3

**A** **Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 3**

Disclaimer: How many times I gotta say this idk. I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters or settings, the only thing that belongs to me is the oc, Angelica Rose. So yeah.

Oh and this contains senstive subjects like child abuse, violence, and a bunch of other stuff, if you're disturbed by this kind of stuff, then don't read.  
"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

Third chapter let's go!❤️

* * *

"Where do I start..." 

* * *

*17 years ago*

|"Hey! There's a baby here!"

"No way! What's it doing?!"

"I don't know! What's with the weird jewels?"

"Fascinating...I've never seen anything like—"

"AHHHH! WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED!"

"I DONT KNOW!"

"I-I think that the baby is—"

"Let's bring it to the adoption center right now!"

"A-Alright!"| 

* * *

*4 years after that*

|"Hmmm...she looks like she'll be a fine young lady later on...don't you think honey?" A strange man in a brown coat and bagged ripped jeans said, looking at the little girl in front of him.

"Oh my...she's looks perfect...quite frankly...a little too perfect...I'm getting jealous." a dressed women in high heels and overly dramatic makeup walked over to the man's side, who was her husband. "Other than that weird eye of her's, she looks like a straight angel, a little runty though..."

"She's too perfect to deserve anything else, we need to take her and teach her what we call..."

"Cruel reality..." the man finished and grinned. "...besides, she looks good for making a good amount of money out of."

"Ugh!" the woman gagged, "look at those jewelry, why did someone decide to give some precious gems to someone like her! We need them, they'll cost a fortune!"

"Then it's decided..." the man snickered, "we'll take her...and make sure she gives us anything we tell her to get."| 

* * *

"Wait..." Aster interrupted wide-eyed, "...were they..."

Angelica nodded, looking down and holding onto the bedsheets. "They were my adopted parents, Mr. and Mrs. Rose...I also found out that they already had two biological children, Gizelle and Robert..."

"That's horrible..." Jesse said softly, almost in a whisper.

"They..." Jaden breathed, "...they adopted you for...money..."

The girl nodded and gripped the sheets tighter, "They didn't give a damn about me, the only thing they would care for is their real children and if I died, because apparently I was their way out of the worm hole." she said and her voice turned into a whisper. Aster held her hand to try and comfort her. Angelica took a deep breath and continued. 

* * *

*At the Rose's "House"*

|The gateway was broken and the house itself looked over a hundred years old, but it was still stable, the Rose's barely managed to pay rent most of the time and relied on their children to do chores and jobs to raise money in order to keep a healthy lifestyle. The place reeked and there were two, which were exceptionally clean. Robert was 6 years older than Angelica, which made him the oldest, and Gizelle was 3 years older, which made her the middle. The first day at the house was already torture. The kids would play around with Angelica. Robert would punch her around and mock how weak and pathetic she looked, and that just because she was pretty, doesn't mean she would get whatever she wanted.

"Don't expect for everyone to call you pretty after this!" he would yell, smacking her against the wall.

As for Gizelle, she despised Angelica for her beauty, jewelry, and her voice. On the first day, she asked her,

"Hey, what's your name and where you'd get that necklace and the bracelet?"

Angelica thought that they were nicer than the parents. So she answered,

"My mommy and daddy gave them to me, I don't know who they were, but I still love them. And my name is Angelica!" she gave a wide smile.

Gizelle gagged in disgust, 'This has got to be a joke!' she thought, 'She is unbelievably pretty, has a voice I've never heard, and has these gems that look like they cost millions of dollars! I'm supposed to be the pretty one! What if she comes to our school?! Then they'll all want to be around her, not me!' she gritted her teeth and pulled Angelica's hair so hard that she fell to the floor.

"Ow...w-why did you do t-that?" Angelica cried, immediately spilling tears.

"Don't start crying like a stupid baby!" Gizelle yelled, "I did that because that's what will happen if you try and take away all of my popularity, got it? I'm the older one, so you shouldn't be messing with me!" Angelica just looked while tears continued to flow, once she got a glare from , she gave up and ran into her room. If you can even call it that, it was actually in the attic that no one used, because it was more broken up and filled with disgusting garbage and bugs. All that they got for her was a mattress and a few ripped blankets.

Her stepparents couldn't care less if she got beat up to the point of shedding blood. They actually praised their real children when they, "taught the little brat a lesson". They never bought her anything, other than clothes to wear for school and stuff so she can learn to be a role model and make loads of money by selling off her body, the parents even refused to work and let Angelica do everything, and gave nothing in return, just a bunch of horrible names and hits. She had nothing, no toys, no attention, no love. It continued like that for a few years.|

* * *

*At age 8*

|Robert was already going to high school, but still lived in the dump they called "home". Gizelle was 11, and was stuck in the same school as Angelica, because she had to repeat a grade, and was still in 4th grade instead of 5th. The school held up to 6th grade, so she'd have to stay for 2 more years till she could leave.  
Angelica was already in 3rd grade, thanks to her intelligence and excellent grades. During her time at the school, many people began to like Angelica more and more, always saying "hi" and she passed by and smiling.

Usually people would not want to go to school because it was boring. But not Angelica, she always looked forward to school everyday, because it was the only time when she can be herself and truly be happy. At school, she had Duel Monsters, she loved dueling more than anything else in the world, and would always duel people in her grade, and everyone called her the "Duel Queen" because no one in the school was able to beat her. People would ask about her eye, but she didn't say anything, because she didn't know what it was either. But when she saw how creepy it looked, she put an eyepatch over it and would always cover it with her long silver/white hair. Her deck had mostly monsters with powers relating to the four elements, light, and darkness. That's why people loved to see her deck.

Everyone loved Angelica, everyone except Gizelle, who at this point was so frustrated that she wasn't the most popular girl in school anymore. The only time people would say something "good" is when they talked about Angelica.

"Hey Gizelle! Your stepsister is great!"

"Gizelle! You're so lucky to have a great stepsister like Angelica!"

"Hey Gizelle! You're little stepsister is so pretty!"

It made Gizelle so angry to the point where she had to resort to trickery in order to get everyone to hate Angelica. It wasn't going to be easy, but she was going to do it. But before she spread any rumors, something terrible happened.|

* * *

*Age 11*

|Angelica came back from school one day, to find her stepmother in the entrance, probably waiting to scold at her for something she supposedly said or did. She looked at Mrs. Rose and she just came up to Angelica and slapped her right in the face.

"You worthless piece of crap!" the woman yelled, sounding more angrier than ever, "Gizelle has to skip a grade, again, and you wanna know why?" she grabbed Angelica by the shirt and dragged her up to the attic, while the stepfather followed behind, looking just as upset.

"I-I didn't d-do anything...I s-swear!" Angelica cried, as she was dropped to the floor and hit with a bat that the man was carrying, she cried in pain as he hit the spot where he always does, and it had already left a huge bruise.|

* * *

Angelica had winced at the memory, already bringing tears to her eyes, and she grabbed the bedsheet in a tight grip.  
Aster scooted closer to her and put his arm around her shoulder. Angelica gave in to the gesture and rested her head on his shoulder, trying to gain her voice back.  
Jesse and Jaden were looking with sad faces, they felt really bad for Angelica, because she had such a rough childhood. But then as if Angelica was reading their thoughts and feelings, she started to speak again,

"It gets a lot worse, I don't think any of you can even imagine..." she whispered, and looked up at Aster and gave him a weak smile. "Thank you."

"It's alright," he replied, still feeling a bit of pain in his heart at the story she told. 'I can't believe that she went through all that...' he thought, '...her stepparents were horrible, and so were her step-siblings. It must have been so much for her.' As Aster thought this, he started to rub at Angelica's arm, and she winced in pain.

"Sorry! I didn't know you were hurt there..." he said, pulling his arm back to let Angelica look at the arm, she refused to roll up her sleeves, and just looked at it with a pained expression.

"I'm fine, just a little hurt that's all." she assured, giving out a whole-heartedly smile and her eyes no longer had tears in them.

Angelica then looked out the window, to find that the sun had already set, and the night was ready to come. She sighed and looked at the three boys, and Jaden eyes softened.

"Well...I think that's a lot to take in already..." he said, still a little shaken, "I guess it's time for us to go back, right?"

Jesse nodded and stood up, "Yeah, it's already getting late too..." he said, still looking sympathetic, "...are you gonna be okay?" Angelica nodded and smiled.

"Don't worry about me." she said, bringing back her happy and calm mood, "I'll be fine, you guys can go back to your rooms, and I'll maybe tell you more another day..."

The boys nodded, before Jaden's eyes lit up again.

"Can we duel tomorrow? I'd really like to see how good you are... 'Duel Queen'" he teased and playfully bowed. Angelica laughed, sounding like bells.

"Alright Jaden! We duel tomorrow! And if you're friends wanna come to, that would be even better!" she exclaimed, sounding very cheerful.

"I gotta warn you Angelica..." Jesse said in a warning tone, "Chazz can be really competitive, he may challenge you as well."

Angelica giggled, "I'll keep that in mind Jesse!" Aster then went towards the door with the two boys and they looked back again.

"Hey..." Aster began, "...if you need anything, just tell us ok? Because believe it or not, you have true friends with you, and you can come to us if anything is bothering you..."

Angelica looked, smiled, and nodded, "Thank you so much..." she whispered loud enough for the boys to hear her, the boys smiled back and nodded, they exited the room and Aster grabbed the door to close it. He looked once again at Angelica's beautiful eye.

"Goodnight..." he whispered

"Goodnight..." she replied back, and Aster closed the door.

Once Angelica knew that they were gone, she let out a sigh and threw herself on her bed. "I have true friends..." she whispered, smiling to herself, "...I've never felt such compassion and sympathy from anyone like that, but they were so nice, and Aster..." she blushed as she thought of the boy with cobalt blue eyes that showed kindness and lots of spirit, "...Aster...he's so caring...he makes me feel comfortable, when I'm around him...I feel so relaxed..." Angelica slowly closed her eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep, with a smile still on her face. But what she didn't notice was that the voice that kept on pestering her was listening to the whole conversation, and was looking at how Angelica felt about that Aster Phoenix.  
The voice laughed.

||I think I found my new target, and we'll see how you think afterwards...||

* * *

Author's Note:

Geez I kinda feel bad now...sorry. Poor Angelica.

Halloween is coming up! Yaaasssss! I love this day, it's full of scares(not to mention candy)! Criticism is welcome(this has been pure sadness now that I see this, don't worry the romance will come in a few more chapters). I know this was short, didn't want to expose _everything_ just yet.

Byyyeeee~


	5. Chapter 4

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 4**

Disclaimer: You know the drill! I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters of settings except Angelica Rose, and yeah.

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

Start the Chapter!

* * *

Jaden, Jesse, and Aster were walking back to the Red dorm, where the rest of the gang was hanging out. While they were glad to just go back and have fun, they couldn't be all playful, especially after what they heard from Angelica, the story had really got them down and worried. Mostly, they were all bugged by something that she said.

|"It gets a lot worse, I don't think any of you can even imagine..." she whispered...|

"How could have things been any worse than what she told us?" Aster asked, in a very worried tone, the other two boys looked back and their faces fell.

"I don't wanna even think 'bout it..." Jesse sighed.

"Me neither..." Jaden nodded, "It already sounded bad enough, to have something even worse happen is very hard to believe..."

"Hell, the whole thing is hard to believe!" Aster exclaimed, the other two agreed. It really was hard to believe that someone like Angelica, who looked like a well-raised child would have such a horrible past. What more was there to the story that made it even more unbearable?

||I'm also concerned about something else...|| Yubel said, appearing beside them again, still with a stern face, ||It's who she was talking to at the lake, because it wasn't a duel spirit...it wasn't even a normal spirit. That voice she probably heard, I think it's a part of her.||

"Like a part of her mind?" Jaden asked, becoming more worried by the second.

||Like a part of her soul...her very existence...|| Yubel said hesitantly.

All the boys stared at her wide-eyed.

"B-But..." Aster breathed, "h-how..."

||I don't know.|| Yubel flatly stated, clearly sounding disappointed, ||I can't look into her soul enough for me to look into her past, or that voice in her head, all I know is that Angelica isn't any normal human...she possesses something...but I can never dig deep enough to find it. Because this strange "spirit" keeps blocking me...||

"That's so weird...but..." Jesse paused, "...but it would explain some things, like why she's so angry about it, or why it threatened to kill."

"Aster...you okay?" Jaden asked, because he noticed that Aster looked horrified, and was facing the ground. Jesse faced him and looked worried as well. After a few moments, Aster finally perked his head up to face the boys staring at him.

"I...I d-don't..." he stuttered, he couldn't think of a straight answer, and for once was at a loss for words. 'Dammit!' he scolded himself, 'Get a grip!'

"I...don't know what to think, or what to believe anymore..." he said, his piercing blue eyes showing so much fear, fear that what Yubel said might be true.

There was a long silence as they finally arrived at the dorm, they came to the door of the small eating room, where their friends would most likely be. Jaden gave one last look at Aster.

"Just...try to keep your cool, alright?" he told him. Aster looked and nodded, understanding what Jaden meant by that, because he knew that once they came inside, they were going to be shot with millions of questions, not to mention they would have to answer all of them. Jaden took a deep breath, and slowly opened the door. In an instance, all eyes were on the three boys who had just entered.

All at once, everyone up from wherever they were and practically pounced on them. Yelling all at once, piling them with so many questions. The only ones who weren't acting like crazy fans were Axel and Jim, who were still sitting and sighed.

"Calm down! Calm down!" Jaden yelled, trying to get everyone to settle down.  
"We'll talk if everyone would just STOP YELLING IN OUR FACES!"

Everyone looked in horror and immediately sat. Yubel snickered, and Jesse just face palmed, "Haou hasn't forsaken him yet..." he muttered.

After everyone had taken their seats. Jaden started explaining, occasionally pausing to think or control himself. Aster looked away while he heard, and Jesse just kept listening, remembering what had happened during their tour. After Jaden was done explaining, everyone was left speechless, even Chazz was dumbfounded. They couldn't believe anything they heard, but it was all true.

"That's why you took a long time..." Syrus said.

Jaden nodded, trying to light up the mood, he remembered what they were going to do tomorrow. "Oh yeah!" the brunette exclaimed, making everyone jump a little.  
"Tomorrow I'm gonna duel Angelica!"

Everyone just stared, and then their faces lit up, they haven't seen Jaden duel someone new in a while, and they were also excited to see what kind of deck Angelica would have too.

"Hey! Then we could see those goddesses!" Alexis said, getting a lot more excited. Jim nodded.

"They'd have to be pretty darn strong if their goddesses!" he said, and his crocodile Sherly let out a low growl.

"Sleep comes first though..." Chazz yawned, "I don't know about you guys, but I'd like my good rest before seeing some new girl try and beat Jaden."

"I'm pretty beat too..." Jesse yawned as well. Everyone agreed, said their good nights, and left to their own rooms. Jesse stayed in Jaden's room, since he knew how lonely it could get in the Red dorm. They stayed up for a few more minutes, looking at Jaden's deck and trying to think of different scenarios with the element goddesses. After a while, they got tired, and decided to sleep. Jaden slept in the same bed as he always had, and Jesse slept on the bed on top of his.

"Night Jess..."

"Night Jay..."

* * *

"No...No..." Angelica muttered in her sleep, "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..." tears began to roll down her cheeks as she tossed and turned, gripping onto the bedsheets for dear life. She tossed and turned in her sleep, trying to wake up, trying to make it stop. After many minutes of torture, she suddenly screamed out in pain and tears as she was knocked from her nightmare.

She sat up, panting and breathing heavily, shaking terribly as she still held the sheets in a tight grip, and began to hold her covered eye. After a few minutes, she held her knees against her chest and began to sob silently, wishing that the nightmare was just that. A nightmare, but it wasn't. She wished it never happened. She wished she could just die and bring all those people back. But no. It wasn't that simple. She went to go take a quick shower before getting something to eat. It was a bit early in the morning, but Angelica refused to go back to sleep, because it would probably mean reliving that memory. But why did she relive now? Was it a warning? A sign?

She sighed and went to her cabinet, where she had her duel disk and deck. But there were two decks, one she always shows to other people, and one she refuses to ever use. Because it wasn't just her deck...it was _it's_ deck too.

||Come on...|| the voice mock pleaded, ||I just wanna have some fun...this is a perfect opportunity to use our deck...don't you think, Angelica?||

"No." Angelica deadpanned, not being convinced one bit, she would never want to use that deck, especially when dueling one of her friends.

||You're too soft.|| the voice hissed,  
||What's the point of making friends? If they find out what you really are, you won't be able to call them friends anymore. Then what? Will you just die again? Especially that silvered hair boy...Aster Phoenix, I believe...||the voice smirked as Angelica became instantly filled with fear.

"No!" she cried, "Don't you dare do anything to him! I swear if you lay one finger on him—"

||Looks like I hit a nerve.|| the voice chuckled. Angelica began to cry. If anything were to happen to the boy, she would never get over it, and wouldn't be able to live with herself. After more minutes of silently crying, she stopped, gained her composure, and grabbed her deck. The Element Deck. The one that had the four element goddesses. The four spirits appeared beside her, and she picked up her necklace, and bracelet.

"Being near death four times..." Angelica whispered to herself, "...heh, I don't think people can rule that out when they learn about me..." she walked out the door, duel disk in hand, ready to duel the best student in Duel Academy, but then...

||One more thing...|| the voice came back, and Angelica stopped. Waiting for it to continue. ||I may have messed around with that kid's dreams...the one with that Yubel spirit...||

Angelica looked wide-eyed, not believing what she heard. Jaden must have had really horrible nightmares. Who knows what he could've seen?

"You did WHAT?!" she yelled, making the people who were in the rooms next to her jump.

All the voice did was laugh, ||I wonder how the poor boy is doing...||

* * *

"Welp! That was some good restin'!" Jesse exclaimed, stretching his arms and yawning. He looked down to find Jaden already up, staring at the ground, with a petrified look on his face. Jesse's face immediately fell, 'What's up with him?' he thought.

"Jay...is somethin' up?" the blunette asked, getting down his bed, and sitting down next to his friend.

Jaden looked up, only to show tear streaks that were left on his cheeks. "Jesse..." he breathed, still having a lump in his throat and choking, "I...I h-had a nightmare, a-and..." he began to cry, "No...I c-can't..." he said in between sobs, starting to shake terribly.

Jesse quickly took the trembling boy in his arms, hugging him tightly. Jaden just cried onto Jesse's chest, clinging onto his shirt. Jesse felt his heart in pain when he saw Jaden sobbing like this. He hasn't seen him in this state for a long time.

"It's okay Jaden..." he whispered, using his soothing voice to try and calm the boy down. "It was just a nightmare...nothing more..."

"B-But..." Jaden choked, "It f-felt...so real...I couldn't w-wake up..." Jesse pulled Jaden closer, and slowly rubbed his back.

'What nightmare was it?' Jesse thought , resting his head in Jaden's hair. 'For him to wake up like this...what happened in there?'

Winged Kuriboh appeared on Jaden's shoulder, looking worried.

"Kurii..." it cooed, and then, Yubel and Ruby Carbuncle appeared.

"Rubiii..." Ruby also cooed, and went beside Jaden and nuzzled against him. Yubel just looked, with a sad look on her face.

||That nightmare was pretty horrible...|| Yubel said, ||There was lots of screaming. Everyone he knew was dying in front of him, as he stood there, unable to move...|| She looked at Jaden, who buried his face in Jesse's chest so he wouldn't have to hear anything, ||But there was something else...|| Yubel hesitated, ||...a voice was threatening him...saying that if Jaden messed with its affairs...this nightmare would become a reality...||

Jesse became filled with fear. 'It's happening again...' he thought, '...someone's after Jaden, and who knows what this person is planning...if we somehow interrupt, everyone will die...'

"Yubel..." he asked, almost pleading, "...do you know who this voice belonged to?"

||...|| Yubel looked down, pausing to say something, ||I don't know for sure...|| she replied, still thinking of what to say, ||...it was blocking my power, preventing me from actually doing anything...but I do remember how it sounded like...||

"Well?" Jesse asked a little urgently, Jaden finally looked up and faced Yubel, wanting to hear her answer.

||It sounded...distorted...|| she began, ||...it was all broken up...almost demonic...but I could've sworn...it sounded like a darker version of...Angelica...||

They all looked at her wide-eyed, utterly speechless, and their voices died in their throats. Angelica, the girl who showed the most truthful and bright smile they've ever seen, the one who was very kind and understanding, the one who trusted them, and told them about her adopted parents, was the same one who threatened to kill everyone Jaden knew and loved.

Jesse opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off when someone was rapidly knocking on the door, sounding very desperate to get in.

"Who is it?!" he yelled, sounding a bit angry and still shocked.

"It's me!" a familiar voice called, the boys froze as they recognized who it was, and they didn't want to open the door. "I know you don't want to see me! And I know that you're beyond angry and afraid!" She yelled, sounding like she was on the verge of tears, "But please! You have to believe me! That voice was not me in that nightmare!"

"Then how do you know 'bout it?!" Jesse snapped back, still considering believing Angelica, because she sounded as she was about to cry. "How do you expect us to believe you huh?!"

At this point, Angelica had already begun to shed tears, "I'll...I'll explain e-everything!" she cried, "I promise to explain everything! Just...please..." she leaned against the door, fearing that she had already lost the friends she made yesterday, the only friends that she's had in a long time, "...you have to...believe me..."

Jesse looked at the door, losing all his anger, and it turned to sympathy. He looked back at Jaden, who was still in his arms. The brunette looked and nodded, signaling him that it was okay to let her in. Jesse got up, and as he was walking towards the door, Yubel smirked, ||You know, my prince...|| she said, sounding mischievous, ||...you and Jesse looked really comfortable all cuddled up like that, you two are just too cute...|| she snickered when she saw Jaden blush to the roots of his hair.

"W-W-What...?" he stuttered, having no idea why, they were best friends, but it wasn't normal for them to be cuddling like that. Not only that, but he felt so comfortable in Jesse's strong grip, and secure. It had made him have little butterflies in his stomach and he suddenly felt warm. 'What the hell?!' Jaden yelled in his mind, 'Jesse's my best friend, nothing more! Do I really have feelings for him?! Dammit I can't think like that! Jesse wouldn't want to even look at me if I felt that way with him!' Jaden shook the thoughts out of his head. Now wasn't the time to think about his weird emotions for Jesse, there was still the matter of the nightmare, and Angelica, who was claiming not to be the person in it. But if it wasn't Angelica...then who was it?

Jesse opened the door, and his breath got caught in his throat. Angelica looked so fragile, like if they made the slightest mistake in their word choice, she would completely break. Tears were rolling down her cheeks, and her eye showed so much guilt and fear that it was impossible not to feel sorry for her. Her face had lost all its color and made her look like a ghost. Even worse, her hands were shaking terribly, and her legs were trembling. She probably could've fallen over at any second, and it looked as if she'd seen a horrific sight. Which was partly true, since she thought that the boys hated her, and would never want to talk to or even go near her ever again.

"T-Thank you..." she whispered, unable to speak any louder.

Jesse was thinking of shooting Angelica a angry look, but he reconsidered when he heard how broken she sounded. 'It couldn't have been her...' he thought, '...look at her! She practically is already stabbed to the core! She looks like she's seen a ghost! I did yell...maybe I was a little too harsh...we still don't know anything about her, so it must have to do with her past...now I feel like an idiot...' he was broken out of his train of thought when someone called out to the girl.

"Angelica!" a familiar slivered hair boy ran towards the two, and stopped beside Angelica, grabbing her shoulders and making her face him. Angelica gasped at the movement and looked shocked.

"A-Aster..." she breathed, looking into his cobalt blue eyes.

"Why...?" Aster put his hand on Angelica's cheek, to wipe away the stray tears that were still stained there, "What happened? Why are you...?" he whispered, Jesse looked at Aster and felt even worse. He knew well that the boy had cared a lot more for Angelica than he has cared for any girl before. So Aster must have felt lots of pain in the heart when he saw Angelica in such a fragile state. It made him think of how Jaden was just a few moments ago, seeing someone else who was in more fear, and mixed with guilt, had ultimately made him guilty.

Aster had pulled Angelica into a tight embrace, as he stoked her hair. He then looked at Jesse, who was just staring, lost in his own thoughts.

"You have some explaining to do gem boy!" he scolded, using his nickname for Jesse, which he only used when he was really pissed. That's how the boy knew when Aster was mad at something, or in this case, at him.

"A-Angelica..." Jesse looked at her, wanting to apologize, "...listen, I—"

"It's alright Jesse..." Angelica said, a little louder than a whisper, but still quiet, "I understand that you were mad, and Aster..." she looked at him, "...it's about something that happened in a nightmare that Jaden had..."

Aster looked at her and was surprised. Angelica let go of Aster, and they all went inside. Aster was even more shocked to see Jaden still looking petrified about the nightmare. Normally Aster couldn't care less, but when it came to the overly excited and energetic brunette, he felt sad.

"Are you...okay Jaden?" he said softly. Jaden looked up, but didn't do anything, other than look back at Angelica, who still had tear streaks on her cheeks. His face softened, and he decided that she was telling the truth, it wasn't her.

"I-I'm still shaken up about everything..." he said slowly.

Aster and Angelica sat on the floor, with Aster pulling Angelica back in his arms, making her feel warm and blush. She rested her head on his shoulder and slowly breathed out. Jesse sat next to Jaden again, and also pulled Jaden closer to him, not exactly sure why, but it felt great to have him so close, and to feel his warmth. 'Me and Jaden are best friends...' Jesse thought, as Jaden rested his head in Jesse's chest again, listening to the rhythm of his heartbeat. '...so why do we keep doing this? Why do I want him to be next to me like this? I can't start having feelings for him...Jaden would think I was a creep. But...this just...feels right...' he sighed and just brushed the thoughts out of his head, looking away, and not noticing the blush that were on both boy's cheeks. Yubel chuckled a bit, not believing how close they were.

"Um..." Jaden hesitated, "...so Angelica...do you know who was in my nightmare...?"

Angelica looked down, "I...I do..."

||You damn well do...|| the menacing voice sneered, very amused at the situation. Angelica clenched her fists.

"Why did you do it?" she said, already becoming more and more angry by the second. The boys just looked at her with bewildered expressions. Because this is just like what happened at the lake.

||What? I can't have a little fun once in a while?|| the voice asked, mocking its innocence, ||Besides...that kid is very troublesome. I need him to stay out of my way...||

"What are you going to do?!" she yelled, trying to sound tough, but couldn't because she already had a hunch as to what it's plan was.

||Simple...|| the voice chuckled, ||...it'll be a repeat of what happened about...6 or 7 years ago I believe...||

"No!" she cried, getting off the floor, and standing in a defensive position. "Not again!" the boys got a hold of her so that she would calm down, but Angelica just collapsed into another fit of tears, "Please..." she whispered, "...not again..."

Aster grabbed Angelica and pulled her into another desperate hug, not wanting to see her broken state again. Angelica just cried for what seemed like hours. After she was done, she looked at everyone, and sighed.

"The voice who was talking to me..." she began, "...it's the same one who threatened Jaden..." everyone gasped, after a moment of silence, Jaden asked.

"But who...or what is it? It sounded like you, just more distorted..."

"It—" Angelica was cut off when they heard another knock on the door.

"What now..." Jesse muttered.

"Hello! You in there Jay?" Syrus called through the door.

"Up 'n at 'em sarge!" Hassleberry yelled through the door, "You got to get to battle!"

"Oh yeah the duel!" Angelica exclaimed, "I completely forget!"

"So did I!" Jaden also exclaimed.

Jesse let Jaden go, and Aster let go of Angelica, as Syrus and Hassleberry bursted through the door. Startling the four who were in. The two just looked around, totally lost.

"Uh...am I missing something?" Syrus asked, completely confused. Jaden just shook his head.

"It's nothing Sy'" he said, putting on his usual goofy grin, "we were just talking about the duel, and they came over." he pointed towards Aster and Angelica.

"Oh..." he lost his words when he saw that Angelica was in the room. Angelica blinked, then understood why Syrus looked sad all of a sudden. She sighed and smiled.

"It's nothing bad." she said, sounding like her old self again, "we just wanted to make sure Jaden was ready as well. Cause I've heard he likes to oversleep a lot." she giggled as she saw Jaden pout and cross his arms.

"Not all the time..." he muttered, making everyone laugh. Jaden couldn't help but smile.

"Well what 're we waiting for!" Hassleberry exclaimed, already at the door. "Let's to the battlefield ASAP!"

Syrus sighed, "I swear he can be such an animal..."

"I heard that Truesdale!" Syrus jumped and looked a bit afraid.

"Oops..." he whispered, and trudged along to the door. Angelica giggled again at how ridiculous they looked. The four looked at each other.

"Let's just have a little fun." Angelica assured, the boys nodded and they all walked out the door.

"Oh yeah..." Angelica said as a thought crossed her mind, she looked back at Jaden and Jesse, who blinked in confusion, "...just saying, but you two look cute together." Aster burst into laughter when he saw the boy's faces turn beet red.

"A-Angelica!" Jaden yelled, clearly very embarrassed. "It's not like that!"

"Y-Yeah!" Jesse yelled as well, he was as embarrassed as Jaden was, "We're just friends!"

Angelica laughed, "If you guys say so. I was just throwing that out there!" Aster got the laughter out of his system, and continued to walk with Angelica, as they were still making jokes. Jaden and Jesse stayed completely silent, until Yubel appeared once more, smirking.

||Told you so...|| she said coyly.

"YUBEL!"

* * *

Author's Note:

Lol a bit more Spiritshipping than I intended, but hey I like them together.

*sigh* I am definitely not good with written out duels, given the point that I've never written one in the first place. But that's what next chapter is gonna be! Don't worry, the duel will have a bit of some lore, so don't skip it! You can skip the whole summoning parts, but not the most important parts! Oh and four of the cards Angelica will have are made by me! The four goddesses! No they aren't overpowered or anything...maybe...depends what you call "overpowered".

Again, shoutout to presea221!

Byyyeeee!


	6. Chapter 5

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 5**

Me: Here we go again...

Angelica: I think you really need to take a break.

Me: *sigh* you think?

Angelica: *giggle* don't blame me if people hate me.

Me: And why not?

Angelica: Cause your the one who created me...

Me: Right...

?: When will I come into full view?

Me: It's called patience, have you heard of it?

?: F*ck you.

Anyway...I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters, cards, or settings except Angelica Rose.  
"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

(P.S I'm actually going to write out their duel, so if you don't wanna read it then you can skip. And if you do read it, please don't hate me! I suck at writing out duels and all the complicated moves they have to make so please forgive me if I get anything wrong!)

On with chapter 5!

* * *

*At the dueling area*

"We're here!"

Everyone looked, to find Jaden waving his arms like a total idiot, Angelica slightly giggling at how energetic Jaden was when it came to a duel. Jesse sighed and smiled. While Aster shook his head, not understanding how Jaden's head even worked, but it wasn't out of the ordinary.

Alexis, Chazz, Bastion, Jim, Axel, and Atticus were sitting in their seats, waiting for the rest to get there. Since they took a while, Syrus and Hassleberry decided to go fetch Jaden. Thinking he was probably oversleeping again. Everyone got up and went over to the group who had just arrived.

"What in the world were you doing Jaden?" Alexis asked, sounding pretty impatient.

"Yeah!" Chazz sneered, "You don't oversleep and let us wait for you!"

Jaden rubbed the back of his head, "Uhhh...long story..."

" _Very_ long story..." Angelica added.

Everyone had noticed Angelica standing beside Aster, and they didn't really know whether they should ask her something, or just pretend she's just any other person.

"Well that can wait!" she exclaimed, smiling her usual bright smile, and her eye lit up with excitement, "I think it's time I introduced my deck to you guys!"

"What are we waiting for?" Jaden asked, "I'm getting pumped up just thinking about it!"

As everyone went to their seats, Jaden and Angelica took their positions on the platform, a good amount apart from each other, and ready to duel. They shuffled their decks, and placed them in their duel disks.

'Alright, time to get my game on!' Jaden thought, as he activated his disk.

'Let's see what you got Jaden!' Angelica thought, as she also did the same.

"DUEL!"

* * *

"I'll make the first move!" Angelica declared, Jaden nodded as she drew a card.

'Alright...' Angelica thought, 'I know what kind of cards Jaden has got, so I think I'll start with this...'

"I place a monster face down!" she said, as the card was shown in front of her, "Then...I set two cards face down!" she lowered her duel disk. "I end my turn!"

"No good cards or what?" Chazz said, pretty disappointed with the opening move.

"Alright! My turn!" Jaden said, he drew, "I summon...Elemental HERO Burstinatrix!"

ATK: 1200/ DEF: 800

"Then I activate the spell card H-Heated Heart! Which raises the attack points of Burstinatrix by 500!"

ATK: 1700/ DEF: 800

"Now! Burstinatrix! Attack her face-down monster!"

The hero flew up in the air and threw fireballs at the set monster. And it flipped over, it revealed itself to be "Hiita the Fire Charmer".

ATK: 500/ DEF: 1500

But before the fireballs could destroy it...

"I activate my face-down!" Angelica declared, "Backfire!" The card flipped over just as Hiita was destroyed.

"What?" Jaden asked.

"When one of my fire attribute monster is destroyed..." Angelica answered, "You take 500 points of damage!"

Jaden: 3500  
Angelica: 4000

"And..." she continued, "I activate my other face-down, the spell card Soul Reversal! I can put one flip-effect monster from my graveyard to the top of my deck! Therefore...Hiita returns to my deck." she got the card and did what the spell card said.

"Woah..." Atticus said, "She took some life points and took back the monster that was destroyed"

"That monster could be trouble as well." Axel stated, "It's a flip effect monster, and not a nice one at that."

"What do you mean?" Syrus asked.

"It's a charmer." Jim said, "I've seen plenty of them before. If they flip and stay on the field, the owner can take control of one of the opponent's monsters that is the same attribute."

"So if Jaden wouldn't have destroyed it, then Burstinatrix would be under Angelica's control?" Alexis asked

"Exactly, mate" Jim nodded.

They brought their attention back to the duel, where it was just the end of Jaden's battle phase.

"I'll just throw down a facedown!" Jaden declared, "That's it for me. Damn! You're really good!"

Angelica smiled, "Thanks!" she drew a card, "Let's see what I got for you now!"

She looked at her hand and smiled.

"I activate Pot of Greed!" she drew two more cards.

"I summon Fortune Lady Fire!"

ATK: ?/ DEF: ?

"What about it's attack points?" Jaden asked, the girl just giggled.

"It's attack and defense points are determined by the level of it times 200. So it has 400 ATK and DEF."

ATK: 400/ DEF: 400

"Why does she have that in her army?" Hassleberry asked, tilting his head in confusion. As if Angelica read his mind, she then continued her turn.

"I activate the spell card Psychic Blade, and equip it to my Fortune Lady!" a bright glowing sword came out as the Fortune Lady grabbed it, "The monster that is equipped with this sword will gain as much attack points as the amount of life points I lose. I choose...1000 extra attack points!" Everyone looked at her a bit shocked, since she used up a lot of life points just to power up her monster.

ATK: 1400/DEF: 400

Jaden: 3500LP  
Angelica: 3000LP

"Now...Fortune Lady Fire...attack his Burstinatrix!" In one swing of the sword, Burstinatrix was destroyed.

Jaden: 3300LP  
Angelica: 3000LP

"I activate my face-down card!" Jaden said, "Hero Signal! When one of my monsters are destroyed by battle, I can summon one Elemental HERO from my deck or hand that's level 4 or below. I choose Elemental HERO Clayman!" The big warrior kneeled as it was placed in defense position.

ATK: 800/ DEF: 2000

Angelica smiled again, she didn't expect anything less from the best duelist in the academy. "I set a card face down and end my turn!"

"Then I'm next! I draw!" Jaden said, looking at the card he drew, he smiled, 'Nice!' he thought. "I activate Polymerization!" Clayman and Sparkman appeared and began to merge together, "I fuse Elemental HERO Sparkman with the Clayman on my field to create...Elemental HERO Thunder Giant!" A strike of lightning came followed by the new fusion monster.

ATK: 2400/ DEF: 1500

"And his effect activates! If there is a monster who's original attack points are less than his own. That monster is automatically destroyed! Go Thunder Giant!" the hero made many lightning bolts appear, and in a blink of an eye, Fortune Lady was gone.

"My Backfire trap activates!" Angelica said, and another 500 life points were taken away.

Jaden: 2800LP  
Angelica: 3000LP

"That's not all! I still got his attack! Thunder Giant...attack her directly!" he ordered, and the monster made lightning come straight for Angelica, which made her flinch a little, but still put on a bright smile.

Jaden: 2800LP  
Angelica: 600LP

"She's already about to lose!" Syrus exclaimed.

"Doesn't look like it to me." Aster said, smiling as he watched how Angelica dueled. Syrus looked at him in confusion.

"He's right." Jesse agreed, "Look at her, she's smiling, and she's got a whole heck of a lot to show left in that deck of hers."  
They all looked back, and Angelica looked absolutely thrilled.

'I haven't enjoyed a duel this much in years!' Angelica thought, 'this Jaden is really something. I could tell without looking too far. He's had to go through a lot to reach his full potential. But now...he makes everyone around him admire his skills. It's incredible!'

"I end my turn!" Jaden said, smiling when he saw how happy Angelica looked, after all the hell she went through, and about what happened this morning, it was nice to see her expression so bright and cheerful.

"My turn!" the girl said, drawing a card. "I activate Graceful Charity! I draw three more cards and discard two." the two cards went to her graveyard.

"I summon Telekinetic Shocker!" a person in a red costume and a mask came out followed by many little lightning bolts.

ATK: 1700/ DEF: 700

"Then I reveal my face-down card!" the said card flipped over.

"Psychic Sword?" Jaden questioned.

"You wanna know what makes it great in my situation?" Angelica asked, grinning, "I can only equip it to Psychic type monsters, and the one that is equipped with it gains attack points equal to the difference of your life points and mine, but max is 2000." Jaden just stared, he was never really enthusiastic when it came to math. So he just stood quiet.

Angelica sighed and giggled, "It means that my monster here gains 2000 attack points, Jaden." the boy looked at her wide-eyed. Everyone sitting down was looking surprised as well.

ATK: 3700/ DEF: 700

"What in the..." Chazz breathed.

"3700 attack points...that's insane..." Syrus said, and everyone else nodded slowly. Aster looked at Angelica, still shocked. He then smiled, 'This girl is amazing...' he thought. Again, Angelica practically read his mind, as she slightly blushed, she then looked straight at Aster, and gave him a warm smile. Aster then began to blush as well.

"So you do like her!" Atticus said, patting Aster on the back, the boy just blushed even more and looked away.

"W-Why would you say that..." he stuttered, not being able to hide the fact that what Atticus said was true.

"C'mon Aster, it's obvious!" Jesse said, smirking at how Aster looked really uncomfortable and nervous, "You two do make a good pair."

Aster mumbled something under his breath, secretly cursing Jesse. Chazz joined in, "Well? Don't leave us hanging." Atticus groaned.

"Just say it already!"

The boy sighed in defeat, still blushing, "Okay fine, I do like her...or..." the last part he muttered so that everyone wouldn't hear him. They all just smiled at him, and Chazz just scoffed.

"Now was that so hard?" Alexis asked, slightly teasing Aster. He just glared at her in response. Now back to the duel.

Jaden was dumbfounded that Angelica was able to bring out something like that. He didn't really know what to say. But he did have a plan.

Gn"Alright..." Angelica said, bringing her attention back to the duel, "Now...Telekinetic Shocker...destroy that Thunder Giant!" the monster summoned many lightning bolts, and sent them straight to the opposing monster, the hero tried to fight back with his own lightning, but his power couldn't rival to the other, so he was destroyed.

Jaden: 1500LP  
Angelica: 600LP

"Why didn't the sarge activate his face-down?" Hassleberry asked.

"It's simple." Bastion said, "The Psychic Sword gives a monster attack points equal to the difference of Angelica's and Jaden's life points, so the closer Jaden's life points are to Angelica's..."

"Then the more attack points her monster will lose!" Syrus exclaimed.

"Precisely."

It was true, since the difference was less, Telekinetic Shocker's attack points went down.

ATK: 2600/ DEF: 700

"But it still has 2600 attack points, this is going to be a problem." Axel pointed out.

'C'mon Jay...' Jesse thought, and he saw the boy smiling cheerfully.

"This is so cool!" Jaden exclaimed, "I have got to hand it to you Angelica, you know how to put on a show! I could see why people called you a Duel Queen!" Angelica chuckled in response.

"I do what I can!" she said, never being as excited in a duel as now, "I end my turn!"

"Alright, my turn!" he said, putting his fingers on his deck, 'Let's see if I can turn this duel around...' he thought as he drew his next card, he smiled.

"I set a monster!" he said, "Then I activate the spell card, Monster Reincarnation! Now I discard one card, and get a monster back from my graveyard." the card went in the graveyard, and another one came out, "That's all for my turn!"

"Then I'll go!" Angelica declared, as she drew, 'I sense something from that card...' she thought, 'It must be one of his duel spirits, but which one?' she looked back at her hand and her smile grew wider.

Jaden gulped, he didn't know what he was going to get now, but judging by the look on the girls face, it was not going to be good for him.

"I activate Monster Reborn!" Angelica said, "Now one of my monsters is summoned from the graveyard! I choose Familiar-Possesed - Hiita!" A much stronger version of the fire charmer appeared.

ATK: 1850/ DEF: 1500

'She's been summoning Fire attribute monsters for a while...' Jaden thought, 'Wait...does that mean...' his eyes widened as he understood what Angelica was trying to do.

"Then I summon Hiita the Fire Charmer in defense position!" the fire charmer appeared once more on the field."

ATK: 500/ DEF: 1500

"Now it's time to fight!" Angelica declared, "Telekinetic Shocker...attack his face-down!"

"Is the duel over?!" Bastion exclaimed.

"No. It isn't." Angelica said, surprising everyone, even Jaden, but he just smiled, because she was right, the duel wasn't over yet. Because the set monster was none other than his Winged Kuriboh.

ATK: 300/ DEF: 200

As the monster was destroyed, Angelica chuckled, "That's what I call taking one for the team. Now you don't take any damage for the rest of the turn." Jaden smiled and nodded, but then something came to his mind.

"Hold up..." he hesitated, "...how did you know that my set card was Winged Kuriboh?"

Angelica blinked, and then she just shrugged, "Let's just say it's an ability for now, I'll be able to explain later don't worry." Jaden nodded in response, not wanting to say something wrong, for fear it might trigger something else. They don't know everything, so it would be wise not to press certain topics like this any further. Especially when they were in the middle of a duel.

"That's enough for now, it's your move!" Angelica said, breaking Jaden out of his thoughts.

"Yeah! I'm next!" he confirmed, and he drew a card, he put on his usual grin, "I activate the effect of Elemental HERO Necroshade from my graveyard, I can summon any Elemental HERO without tribute, I summon my Elemental HERO Neos!" the hero came from the sky and landed straight on the field.

ATK: 2500/ DEF: 2000

"Hey! That's one of your best monsters!" Angelica said, overjoyed to finally get to see Neos in full view, and that she gets to fight it in a duel.

"That's right." Jaden said proudly, "I activate my set card, just saying, it wasn't a trap card to begin with, I activate the field spell Neo-Space!" the whole field became filled with swirled colors and little stars that brightened up the place.

"Now my Neos gains an extra 500 attack points!"

ATK: 3000/ DEF: 2000

"Neos! Destroy her Telekinetic Shocker!" he commanded, Neos then flew above the small monster, and flew fist first onto it, destroying the monster, and almost taking all of Angelica's life points.

Jaden: 1500LP  
Angelica: 200LP

'Damn that was close...' Angelica thought, 'Okay, I could do this...'

||What's the point of this duel again? I don't get it...||

"No one asked you to come! And if you don't get the point, then leave!" Angelica snapped back, hearing the voice once again. But why? Why now?

Jaden's face fell as he heard Angelica yelling at nothing again. It was that voice. It had to be. Aster and Jesse were immediately worried, since they also knew what she was scolding at. The rest were just staring, thinking that she was absolutely insane.

||You should watch that attitude of yours, it can get you in a lot of trouble...||

Angelica just growled, but she didn't say anything, and the voice laughed at this.

||Much better...|| the voice said, ||Now I'll be on my way, oh and tell Jaden that I hope he hasn't forgotten about that nightmare...|| it faded away, snickering. Angelica just stood and looked at Jaden, gaining her composure.

"I'm...really sorry Jaden..." she said, almost in a whisper, "I...can't stop it...it always come back..."

"It's fine..." Jaden answered back, hesitant because he didn't know if Angelica was still in the mood to duel, "Do you...wanna stop? If you don't feel like—"

"No no! I still want to duel, I'm fine, I promise!" Angelica insisted, Jaden smiled and nodded. Aster and Jesse looked at each other and sighed in relief, everyone was just looking back and forth, totally confused.

"Someone wanna fill us in here?" Chazz asked, pretty anxious to know, "What the hell was that all about?"

"..." Aster looked down at the ground, not sure if it would be a good idea to tell them about this morning, it was a touchy subject to get to so suddenly, and he didn't know if Angelica or Jaden would be okay with it. Jesse was feeling the same, he knows how protective his friends could get, especially Syrus. Who has known Jaden ever since they both entered Duel Academy. It would bring the mood down, and they wouldn't really enjoy the duel.

"Like Jaden and Angelica said..." Jesse answered, looking a little sad, "It's a long story..."

Everyone stood quiet for a while, and no one asked anything else. Just by hearing Jesse's tone of voice, they could tell that it was something they would rather not talk about. They all took their attention back to the duel. Where Angelica was just starting her turn.

"I draw!" she declared, and as she glanced at the card she just drew, her bright smile came back again, "You wanna see a goddess, right?"

Jaden's head perked up, and his eyes lit up in excitement, "Wait...really?"

Angelica nodded, everyone was immediately interested, and they were all waiting to see one of the element goddesses.

"I'm ready," she said, "I sacrifice my two Hiitas and in order to summon my goddess!"

The two monsters were engulfed in flames as it rose all the way up in the air, going around and around, at the same time, Angelica's bracelet began to glow, more accurately, the red gem began to glow a bright red as it almost filled the entire room. Everyone watched in amazement, they didn't expect the card to activate something in her jewelry. Then a beam of red light and flame came out of her chest, out of her heart, her soul. She limped in pain a little, but stood again as the flames began to fade and reveal something, or someone. Everyone was still in awe, watching as the fire blew away.

Angelica smiled, "I call on...Fotiá! The Fire Goddess!"

As she called on her name, the goddess came into full view. Her wings blazing with fire, her expression a bit stern but happy, as her piercing red eyes looked straight at Jaden. Her hair was messy and red, and flowed crazily. She held a wand with a red gem in the middle, and on her back, she hung a large blade that had lava boiling inside. She wore a jewel on her hair that was held in place by strings that stretched to her ears. Showing that she was royalty, that she was a divine being. But there was something everyone had noticed something very...unusual. Her left eye had an eyepatch with the fire symbol. Her eye was being covered...

Just like Angelica.

* * *

Author's Note:

Well that turned out better than I expected!

If you don't know, Fotiá means "Fire" in Greek, all the goddesses have Greek names. My head was hurting after trying to figure out strategies while keeping all the rules in tact! These cards do exist though, I don't own them, they belong to Kazuki Takahashi. Fotiá the Fire Goddess was made up by me! On the other hand...sometimes Aster can be cute!

Aster: Seriously?

Me: What? It's true! Tell him Angelica!

Angelica: She's right Aster! I know you're tough, but at times like these, I can't help but like you even more!

Aster: *blushes* Oh great...

Ignoring their little exchange there, next chapter will be more dueling! Now that I've written this part of the duel, I'm feeling confident for the next one. Hope you enjoy!

Shoutout to presea221!

Byyyeeee!


	7. Chapter 6

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 6**

Goddamn this duel is gonna be the death of me...oh well...

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters, settings, or cards. Other than Angelica Rose and the Elemental goddesses.

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

It's time to duel! Chapter 6!

* * *

Jaden: 1500LP  
Angelica: 200LP

Jaden's side of the field: Neo-Space field spell and Elemental HERO Neos.

ATK: 3000/ DEF: 2000

Angelica's side of the field: Backfire trap card and Fotiá the Fire Goddess.

ATK: 2600/ DEF: 2500

Everyone was looking at Fotiá, she looked almost like Angelica, but way different at the same time, like if they were long lost sisters or something. What made them even more shocked is how the goddess had her left eye covered as well, why did she have to have her eye covered? What had happened? Another thing was bothering them, the goddess seemed to have come straight out of Angelica, and her bracelet began to glow as she was summoned. Which made what Angelica said true.

|"Well...at first...they weren't Duel Monsters, they are actually still a part of my soul...they were born when I was, I never really knew why, and I couldn't ask anyone about it either..."|

The goddesses were all a part of her soul, which explained why she wears the bracelet, and why she felt pain when Fotiá was summoned.

Jaden, Jesse, and Aster had figured this all out while everyone else behind them were still staring at the goddess, not believing what they were seeing, nor did they believe that something like her could possibly exist in the Duel Monsters world. How could it? No one ever told them about this in Duel Academy.

||Is that even a thing?|| a yellow colored alien appeared beside Chazz.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chazz asked, pretty annoyed that it had come out again.

||This goddess doesn't exist in the Spirit World...|| it said, pretty scared at the glare that Fotiá gave.

"Wait, but if it doesn't exist in the Spirit World, then how is it a card?" Chazz demanded, Ojama Yellow just flinched and disappeared. Jesse looked and sighed, he didn't exactly know why, only that this goddess was connected to Angelica since birth, but that doesn't explain everything. There were so many other questions he wanted to ask, but then he thinks of what might happen if it were to make the girl react again. It would be horrible if they had to witness that broken state again.

Jaden was about to ask something, but reconsidered when he thought about what Angelica might think about it. Instead, he decided to give out a compliment.

"She's amazing!" he exclaimed, "I don't think I've ever seen anything like this!"

Angelica giggled, "Thanks. Fotiá is quite flattered as well, she may not show it, but she is honored."

The fire goddess smiled and nodded, Jaden understood and nodded back.

"Oh I forgot to mention..." Angelica said, remembering that they were in a middle of a duel, "If any of the monsters that were tributed fire attribute, the she gets an extra 300 attack points for each."

ATK: 3200/ DEF: 2500

"Uh oh..." Jaden sighed. Now Fotiá was stronger than his Neos.

"Not only that..." Angelica continued, "...but since she's a goddess, she can call on one fire attribute monster from the graveyard to the field until the end of my turn. I can do this once every turn. Just a warning, she gets an additional 100 attack points for every FIRE monster on either side of the field!"

ATK: 3300/ DEF: 2500

"Now that's what I call power!" Jaden said, everyone in the seats were looking on, not really knowing what to say about the ridiculous effects that Fotiá has.

"So..." Angelica said, "...I call Familiar-Possessed - Hiita from the graveyard to the field!" Once again, the red gem on her bracelet began to glow, the same time as the red gem on Fotiá's staff began to glow. Fire then began to come out of the ground, and in the flames was Hiita.

ATK: 1850/ DEF: 1500

"Of course, Fotiá gains an extra 100 attack points!" she added

ATK: 3400/ DEF: 2500

'Man, this is crazy...' Jaden thought, as he looked at how powerful the goddess had already become.

"You have no idea..." Angelica muttered, careful not to let anyone hear her. Luckily no one looked at her suspiciously, well, no one except Yubel, who had heard the comment she made. But she decided not to say anything, since it looked as if her prince was already having a lot of fun.

"Why does something like this even exist?!" Chazz sneered, letting everyone hear him. Everyone had shot him a glare, but that didn't affect him. What did was the intense glare he received from Fotiá, it was a look that could kill. The boy sat down as chills were sent down his spine and he felt himself getting goosebumps.

Angelica saw this and smirked, "Fotiá doesn't act friendly towards bullies, just keep that in mind." she said in almost a threatening voice, which sounded a little out of place for someone like her. Chazz just scoffed, but became a bit nervous when he was shot another glare from the goddess, so he stopped talking.

Jaden blinked in confusion, "You okay Chazz?"

"He'll be fine." Angelica said, "He's just a little freaked out about the stare Fotiá gave him."

"Wow, I didn't even know that was possible for him."

"Me neither." Angelica then began to make her next move, "Alright! Fotiá! Attack his Neos!" she flew with her blazing wings, as the red gem began to glow again, and a big shot of fire came bursting out, swallowing Neos and destroying him.

Jaden: 1100LP  
Angelica: 200LP

"My turn's over!" the girl said, still smiling, and Fotiá began to loosen up also. Hiita then disappeared and went back to the graveyard.

ATK: 3300/ DEF: 2500

"Neos is gone just like that!" Atticus said, "I mean wow, this girl has got Jaden on the ropes already."

"She's an amazing duelist..." Aster smiled, "It's not every day that Jaden is pushed back like this..."

"And _that_ is why you two need to hook up!" Atticus patted the silver haired boy on the back, while he was blushing at the statement.

"Did you forget about something?" Angelica asked, "My Backfire trap is still here, and since my Hiita was sent to the graveyard again, you lose another 500 life points."

Jaden: 600LP  
Angelica: 200LP

'Well, I'm in trouble...' Jaden thought, 'Fotiá has 3300 attack points, and I don't have any monsters on the field! I gotta step it up!'

"I draw!" he declared, "I activate the magic card Pot of Greed!" he drew another two cards.

"I summon my Neo-Spacian Aqua Dolphin!" the neo spacian came out.

ATK: 600/ DEF: 800

"Then..." Jaden continued, "I activate the spell card NEX! Now by sending Aqua Dolphin to the graveyard, I can summon Neo-Spacian Marine Dolphin in it's place!" an upgraded version of the Neo-Spacian was revealed.

ATK: 900/ DEF: 1100

"I play one more spell card!"

'I know what he's trying to do...and it's actually going to work...' Angelica smiled to herself.

"Miracle Contact! By putting Marine Dolphin and Neos back in my deck...I can summon Elemental HERO Marine Neos!" the two monsters fused and created the new hero.

ATK: 2800/ DEF: 2300

"Also," Jaden added, "since the field spell Neo-Space is still on the field, he gains an extra 500 attack points!"

ATK: 3300/ DEF: 2300

'If I can destroy it in battle, then I'd be able to take the lead!'

"Marine Neos! Attack Fotiá!"

ATK: 3200/ DEF: 2500

The hero flew up to Fotiá's height and shot at her, the goddess retaliated by shooting fire out of her wand again, but it failed, and she was destroyed. Angelica looked at Jaden, who was confused.

"They should've both been destroyed..." he said.

"I know." Angelica said, "But when Fotiá engages in battle with a water attribute monster that is level 5 or above, she loses 100 attack points, which made her weaker than your Marine Neos."

Jaden: 600LP  
Angelica: 100LP

"And when Fotiá is destroyed, I can summon two monsters that are level 4 or below, and are both any attribute I say, I choose Water!"

Two monsters came out in a splash of water, one was Raging Eria in defense position.

ATK: 800/ DEF: 1500

The other one was Izanami in defense position.

ATK: 1100/ DEF: 1800

"She's barely hanging on by a thread." Chazz remarked, "At this rate she'll lose in the next turn."

"I wouldn't count on that just yet." Angelica had said, sounding a bit annoyed at the boy, "Everyone always says that, but believe me, not everything is what it seems."

Jaden, Jesse, and Aster looked at her shocked. What she said had more meaning, it sounded almost depressing. There was something about how she said it that gave it more depth. She just didn't mean about the duel, she meant a lot more than that. It wasn't clear exactly what it was, but it was something that Angelica didn't mention.

Jaden opened his mouth to say something, but when he saw the light in Angelica's eye dim and fade, he didn't say anything. He just went back to the duel

"I guess I end my turn then." the boy said.

Angelica looked a little lost in her own world, but she still had the conscious to know that it was her turn. She shook her head so she can focus.

"Alright. I draw!" she drew a card, she smiled again, her luck was improving a lot today.

||More like I helped you...|| someone said, ||You're welcome.||

"What?! You know you're not supposed to do that!" Angelica yelled, maybe a bit too loudly, it made everyone jump a little.

||Who said I had to listen to you?|| it shot back, ||You'll thank me later.||

"Yeah right..." she muttered under her breath, and looked back at the card. Should she still play it? If _it_ tampered with the card, then it might cause some serious damage, not to mention that it was not an honorable duel if she played a card that she drew not by her own will, but the will of that...thing...

Jaden was getting worried because the girl was staring at the card for a long time, "Angelica...is everything alright?"

"I'm so stupid!" she blurted out of nowhere. This made everyone look at her in disbelief, Aster was surprised to hear her say something like that, so were Jesse and Jaden. Angelica gasped and looked around, all eyes were on her.

"I-I'm sorry...I didn't m-mean to say that out loud like t-that...um..." she stuttered, great, now everyone was going to think bad about her, she closed her eyes and wished that she could just disappear, that she didn't exist. But before she had the chance to do anything, Aster's voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"Don't talk like that Angelica!" he yelled, and the girl looked up, she felt warm on the inside again.

"Aster..." she breathed, then she looked at her arms.

'I'm starting to think like that...' she thought, '...maybe...what I did wasn't worth it.' she looked at the slivered hair boy again, gave a reassuring smile, and gained her composure. Aster smiled back, glad that she was okay.

'I know that this card is dangerous, that's why all pain will be inflicted on me...' her necklace began to give out a black fog around it and dark energy surged through the card, and went through Angelica's heart.

"I sacrifice my two monsters!" the monsters were drowned in water as a large wave came crashing down and turned into a water tornado. In the middle was someone. Angelica's bracelet began to shine again, this time, it was the blue gem. A blue light came out of Angelica's heart again, along with a bit of water. She flinched but still smiled. Everyone watched as the waters were parted and revealed...

"I call on Neró the Water Goddess!"

The new goddess had a long mermaid tail with blue scales that shined. Lots of threads that hung by her waist, and she wore a rainbow starfish on her head, her light blue hair flowed beautifully and sparkled because of the small droplets on it. Her fluid blue wings glittered in the water and looked silk. On her back was a large sphere with a star in the middle, and in her hand she held a wand that was a little similar to the one that the other goddess had, but it held a blue gem. Her sky blue eye showed the purity of a child, her face even made her look like one, and her wide smile would make people think that she was a little girl, but she wasn't. Again, her left eye was covered by an eyepatch with the water symbol on it.

ATK: 2600/ DEF: 2500

'She drew that right now?!' Jaden thought, looking at the goddess with unbelieving eyes.

"Because two water attribute monsters were sacrificed, she gains an extra 600 attack points!" Angelica declared.

ATK: 3200/ DEF: 2500

"Her attack points also increase because Marine Neos and herself are water attribute!"

ATK: 3400/ DEF: 2500

'Here we go...' Jaden braced himself for the attack that was going to come.

'This is going to hurt...' Angelica thought as she took a deep breath, "Neró! Attack that Marine Neos!"

The Water Goddess looked back, with a sad expression, and Angelica nodded. Jaden just blinked in confusion, 'Neró doesn't want to attack...?'

Neró looked back and shot a large array of water out of her wand, and a large wave cake crashing down on the hero, and it was destroyed.

Jaden: 500LP  
Angelica: 100LP

Angelica's necklace began to exert some more dark energy as she clenched at her chest. 'I should be used to this pain by now...guess not...' she groaned as she felt another sting in her heart. The Water Goddess looked back with a pained expression, since they were connected by soul, she also felt something, but didn't show it.

"What happened?! Are you alright?!" Jaden yelled across the room, Aster and Jesse stood up, worried that something must've happened. Angelica took a few deep breaths and looked up.

"I'm alright..." she said, as she lowered her arms, she then grabbed her necklace and looked at the black gem that was in the middle. 'That was a bit more than usual...' she thought, 'It really wanted to hurt Jaden...'

"How did that happen?" Aster asked, Angelica looked up at the boy, then at Jaden, then at the necklace, avoiding their gaze.

"It...wanted to hurt you..." she said softly, hesitating to say anymore, "Jaden...it wants you out of the way..." the boy's eyes widened as he knew what she was talking about. The other two boys were instantly filled with fear as well. Jesse especially, 'But why Jaden...? Why is it always him?' he asked himself mentally.

"It was trying to do that...through the duel...?" the boy asked, Angelica slowly nodded. Then she felt her eyes sting and she felt tears growing.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried, "I should've known it would do something like this! If I hadn't done anything, you would've..." she trailed off, not finishing her sentence. It was that bad. She then looked at her duel disk.

"This is my fault..." she whispered, "I'm sorry...Jaden..." the boy looked at her, as Aster and Jesse were walking towards her. Everyone else was looking in shock, there wasn't really anything they could say at the moment, since they had no idea of the incident that happened in the morning.

"Angelica...what are you—" Jaden was going to ask, but he was cut off when he realized what she was doing.

The girl had her hand over her duel disk, and her hair covered her face, because she didn't want everyone to see her like this. But she did this to protect Jaden, and everyone else in the room.

"I surrender."

The Neo-Space field spell was gone, and Neró faded back into her soul, "I don't want anything else to happen, I can't stand the thought of losing anyone else."

At this point, everyone who was sitting down had stood up. Axel looked back at everyone, "We should go." he said, "I think this is a matter between them four, we should leave them be."

"I guess..." Syrus reluctantly agreed, and they all began to walk out slowly, without another word.

"Angelica..." Aster breathed, and he took the girl into a tight embrace. At this point, Angelica had broken down into tears once again, and sobbed onto the boy's chest. Jaden and Jesse felt bad, so they each put a hand on one of her shoulders, and waited for her to get all of it out of her system. Aster buried his face into the girl's soft white hair, while whispering calming words.

"This isn't your fault, you didn't know. No one got seriously hurt, and that's all that matters." he said, as Angelica started to calm down, she pushed back a little and looked into Aster's cobalt blue eyes, she could get lost in them any time.

"Thank you..." she whispered, and she looked at the other two boys, "...all of you...thank you so much..."

Jaden gave the girl a soft smile, "Anything for a friend, right Jess?"

"Of course." the said duelist replied, giving his own smile.

'A friend...' Angelica smiled back. This had been the first time in a while she could ever be called that. She wiped away a few tears, and looked back them, she knew what they were secretly thinking, so she sighed.

"Guess I owe an explanation, huh?" she said matter-a-factly, this made everyone stare at her in concern.

"But..." Aster said, "...if you don't want to talk about it...you don't have to..."

The girl shook her head in protest, "It's better if I tell you, because if I don't tell you...either you'll find out...or... _she_ will tell you..." this was the first time Angelica had addressed the voice as a gender, and it was another girl.

"Well..." Jaden hesitated, "...let's go to your room then...if that's alright."

Angelica nodded, "Yeah...let's go."

Slowly but surely, they all walked towards the yellow dorms, very silent on the way. Angelica managed to slip her hand in Aster's, to which the boy blushed, but smiled and squeezed her hand. It wasn't going to be easy to open up about pretty much everything to them, but Angelica was going to have to do it sooner or later, so it might as well be right now. But she couldn't help be feel nervous, because if the boys wouldn't want to get into any more trouble with her, then they would stay far away. It has happened before, and those "friends" were met with a cruel fate, by _her_...

The voice was interested in the choice that the girl had made, and snickered.

||Oh...this will be fun...||

* * *

Author's Note: Happy Halloween!

It took me a while to finish this because of stuff at school, my siblings, and CANDY!

Angelica: Calm down, don't go on a sugar high.

Right...it's a little too late for that but WHATEVER! I didn't dress up this year, nor did I dress up last year, I'm so boring...Anyway! Hope you liked this chapter, next one is...pretty angsty...sorry. I know I'm probably gonna get yelled at and stuff in the next few chapters because of how cruel I am. Now what I gotta do right NOW is try to get off my SUGAR HIGH before I go freaking JUMP ON ROOFS! Who's gonna sleep in early? NOT ME!

Aster: Well...there's no stopping her now.

Angelica: *sigh* I'll go grab the phone just in case...

Shoutout to presea221

Byyyeeee!


	8. Chapter 7

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 7**

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX(I wish I did) or any of the characters or settings, except Angelica Rose and all her...drama.  
Oh and there's a little bit of cursing, abuse, and mentions of violence and murder. Also mentions of the Devil. So sorry for all those religious people out there who are bothered by it. Don't like, don't read.  
"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

Angelica: Well you have a way with words don't you?!

Me: *sweat drops at all the glares* uhhh...what else was I supposed to say?! I have to—

Everyone: JUST GO ALREADY!

Chapter 7 is here!❤️

* * *

To say that Angelica was nervous is an understatement, a huge understatement.

She was absolutely petrified.

Not because she didn't have an answer, she did. But that was the problem, her answer would most likely scare the boys off, or make them hate her. Just thinking about it was horrible, people have found out before, they ended up dead before they can even say another word to anyone. There was no bright side to the situation Angelica was put in the moment she was born, how was she going to tell her only friends about her parents? Would they ever want to talk to her again? Why did bad things always come to her? The emotional pain would be so much, but even if she ended it, it wouldn't end the cycle. The endless cycle that has gone on for thousands of years. It was fate. It was destiny. That's what she was told every time. But why did fate choose her to bear the ultimate burden?

A burden...

That was it. A burden. That's all Angelica was. She always thought herself as a weight to the world, it didn't need someone like her. Showing herself and then her inner soul would be trickery. It always is. It's not like she doesn't lie. She does. All the time. If she says she's fine, it's most likely a lie, if she smiles, it's a lie most of the time. It's what she had taught herself to do, all these years, she learned how to fake, to lie, to place a mask. Maybe she'd finally be able to take off that mask with her own will. Finally, after thousands of years, she would be able to really open up, to show herself with her own voice.

* * *

"We're here."

Angelica's voice sounded...dead. There wasn't really a good way to explain it. But it didn't sound like her, it sounded emotionless. It really bothered the three boys that were behind her. They all looked at each other, not really sure if they wanted Angelica to tell them anymore. Sure it would be nice to know, but it seemed very sensitive to the girl. Well there was no turning back now.

They entered the Ra Yellow dorm, where some students were standing in front of Angelica's room, waiting for her to come back. One of the boys smirked as he saw the girl he wanted to see approach.

"Well well well. Look who decided to show their pretty little face." the others turned their heads, one of them smirked while the other looked frightened.

"Is it alright if you guys leave?" Angelica said, trying to be as polite as possible, "I want to talk with my friends in my room."

"Told you she's a player." one of the boys scoffed. Aster became infuriated.

"Look, she said leave so go!"

"Alright but before we go..." one of the boys walked up to Angelica, he leaned towards her so the others wouldn't be able to hear.

"What do you want?" Angelica said, getting rid of her polite attitude.

"Does this look familiar?" he whispered, still smirking. In his hand was a pocket knife, though it looked clean, there were a few blood stains on it. Angelica's eye widened, and she immediately snatched it from the boy's hand.

The boy just chuckled, and he leaned into Angelica's ear, "Meet me near the abandoned dorm tomorrow night, I'll be waiting. Unless you want your friends to know about your little...problem..." he poked Angelica's arm, and she let out a little yelp. She grabbed her arm and pulled back. That hurt.

"Hey leave her alone!" Aster was furious by now, and so were Jaden and Jesse. They were about to go after the group when Angelica put her arm in front of them, signaling them to stop.

"Fine." she deadpanned, "Tomorrow night, now _leave_!" the last part she yelled, and for a split second, her voice sounded distorted. The boy scoffed and left, the second boy snickered and followed, shooting glances at the three boys in back, but the last boy from the group didn't immediately follow. He didn't seem like the type of person to pull a trick like that, he even seemed scared.

"I-I-I'm sorry!" he stuttered and bowed. Angelica looked and smiled.

"I know, you didn't want to do it, did you?" she asked, much to the three boys' surprise in the back.

The small boy shook his head, "N-No I didn't, they th-threatened me..."

Angelica clenched her fists, "I'll make sure they don't do that again tomorrow, alright?"

The boy looked up, "No...don't go!"

"What does that guy want?" Jaden demanded.

"H-He..." the boy fidgeted, "...he wants to—"

Angelica put her hand up, and he immediately stopped talking.

"I know what he wants, and I'm going." They all gasped, and were scared at what she said. She said it so casually too, and even sounded annoyed, like if this was a regular thing. The boy rapidly nodded his head and ran out. Aster looked back at Angelica.

"You can't go!" he yelled. Angelica looked at him, and saw the worry in his eyes, but she just gave a soft smile.

"I'll be fine," her voice was surprisingly soft and kind, but it soon changed, "If I don't put that guy down, who will?" this time she sounded like a different person, it was only when she was extremely angry.

"But...what if something happens?" Jaden asked. Jesse nodded, "Yeah! What if they gang up on you? This can all be a trap!"

The girl sighed, "I can protect myself, you know. Besides..." she smiled a little to herself, but it wasn't a kind smile, it looked sinister, "They won't know what hit them..." when the boys saw her eye, it wasn't filled with life, it was empty, clouded with darkness that was so deep that you can look in and never come out.

It wasn't Angelica.

Aster slowly walked up to her, placed a hand on her shoulder, and shook her slightly, "Angelica, are you still in there?" Said girl gasped as her eye returned to normal, she jumped and looked frightened.

"W-What did I say?" she looked at Jaden and Jesse, who exchanged glances and walked up to her.

"You..." Jesse hesitated, "...you said that they wouldn't know what hit them...what did you mean?" Angelica blinked, she stared as she had no idea what he was talking about, but then realization hit her.

"Oh no..." she whispered, Jaden tilted his head to the side.

"What? What do you—" Angelica grabbed his wrist and Aster's hand and dragged both of them into her room, dragging Jesse in soon after. The girl locked the door and sighed.

"I don't want people to hear..." she said quietly, looking at the shocked faces, "I'll be back." the boys nodded as she headed towards the bathroom, hand in her pocket, where she held the small knife.

"That wasn't her talking...it couldn't have been." Aster said, once he knew that the girl was out of earshot.

"She wouldn't say something like that." Jaden agreed, "Her voice didn't belong to her either, it was as if something was possessing her..."

||Almost correct...|| Yubel appeared, with her still cold look on her face, ||That wasn't Angelica, but this person was in someway, connected to her, as if they were one in the same, but had different minds. This other girl is filled with anger, hatred, and sadness, but...||

"But what?" Jaden asked urgently, Yubel sighed.

||Those emotions didn't belong to the entity itself, they weren't her emotions, but someone else's.||

"How can she be fueled by someone else's feelings?" Jesse asked, Yubel shrugged, ||Well...||

"I can answer that." They all jumped as Angelica came out with a sad smile. Her sleeves were a little wet, and she had put the pocket knife back where she had put it before. The boys didn't know about the knife, which Angelica thought was probably for the best.

"Sorry, we didn't see you come in." Jaden said, Angelica took her seat on the bed next to Aster. She had found that she had grown very attached to the silvered hair boy, and found that there was a chance that she would have feelings for him. It wasn't a surprise, he was a very great person, but would he feel the same?

Aster smiled, he had gotten used to the girl's company. Even if it had only been a few days, he felt like he's known Angelica forever. She has really grown on him. He's also noticed that his heart rate would go up every time they held hands, or he had her in his arms. He was very aware of his own actions and feelings, he was in love. It was just the matter of getting out his emotions. But how?

Jesse and Jaden looked at each other and smirked, they knew what the other was thinking. They were going to have to talk to Aster later.

Angelica was snapped out of her thoughts when she remembered why they were in her room, "You guys remember how I was talking about my adopted parents before?" They all looked back at her and solemnly nodded, recalling the story.

The girl let out a small, soft laugh, "I didn't finish, and even if I did, it's not even half of the entire story." she took a deep breath, and closed her eye as she remembered every detail.

* * *

|*Age 11*|

|"YOU CAN NEVER KEEP YOUR FUCKING MOUTH SHUT!"

"I-I'm s-sorry I-I—AHH!"

"Why do we even bother keeping you!"

The parents were constantly hitting and cursing Angelica. Telling her that she was worthless, stupid, and much, much worse. She would always get beat like this, but this time, the parents were more aggressive, and more violent. It was because their biological daughter had been held back, and it was Angelica's fault, someone who they didn't even want as a daughter to care for, but as a way of making money. She had caused them more problems, and now that they had enough money, there was no use for her. They were sick of her.

Angelica's life had no purpose anymore.

"That's IT! We've HAD ENOUGH!" the man yelled, he quickly pulled out a knife, and Angelica knew what they were going to do. But did the others know about this? Gizelle never liked the idea of murder, she said it was too messy and gross, and Robert didn't really care either way.

Angelica felt trapped, scared, and angry all at the same time. She was angry that she had been given such a horrible life, that she had to be stuck with some nobodies who used her for cash. Why couldn't they just _die_?As the man walked up to the helpless girl on the floor, she just closed her eyes and accepted her fate.

"One more thing..." the man went to grab her jewelry. But then Angelica felt something, something that came from her necklace, and it had stung her heart. She screamed in pain, as her "parents" stared at her in bewilderment, while a strong wind pushed the man's hand back.

|When negative emotions join into darkness, it will unleash a new power, thy soul shall be split in two, one of light, and one of darkness. The dark shall give protection, but it will also taint the light. Sadness, anger, hatred, fear...those are the emotions the dark will feed on, until it cannot stay. This is the destiny of the chosen one, the child who wields the balance of light and dark.|

Angelica stood up, her head was hanging low, so they couldn't see her face, and her necklace gave out a black fog of dark energy. The parents didn't see this, so the man just laughed.

"I was hoping you would fight!" he laughed, but his laughter turned into a growl, "DIE!" he lunged towards her, knife in hand. But...

The man and woman gasped, Angelica had dodged the attack, and caught the knife. She had a wicked grin on her face, and she snickered.

"Be careful what you wish for..."

The man was even more frightened as her voice was completely different. Angelica then pushed her hand forwards, sending a force of energy that sent the adults flying and almost breaking the wall. She laughed out loud, completely out of character, and she flew towards her "mother" first, grabbing her by the throat, choking her.

"W-What...are you..." the woman said hoarsely, as she could barely breath. The girl smirked and pointed the knife at her heart.

"What am I?" she repeated, "Well...I'm a lot of things, I'm your worst nightmare right now, but in general, I can be fear itself. Hope you remember this, because where your going, all you will feel is fear." with that said, she pushed the knife down, stabbing the woman's heart, and killing her.

As "Angelica" slowly walked to the other side of the room, she grabbed the bat that was carelessly tossed aside. She turned her head to the man's direction, and smirked when she saw how terrified he looked. She cackled.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to see that expression on you!" she ran and hit the adult with the bat, she laughed again as he let out a cry of pain, "Yes! Keep crying! Scream your heart out! I want you to know how I felt EVERY TIME!" she gave him five more swings, and he had already been bleeding. The girl stopped, kneeled down so they were eye to eye, and leaned into his ear and whispered.

"I will tell you my name. Never forget it. Because I am the last face you will ever see. Here...and in the Underworld..." she paused.

...

|Thou shall have the gift from her mother, the light. But she will also have the curse from her father, the darkness. So the half of her will become a separate person, that is tied to thy soul. Thou must accept her other self, her darker self.|

...

"Kórisatanikí."

She smile wickedly, and raised both her hands that were holding the bat above her head, ready to strike. Her eye was finally shown, it was lifeless, empty, psychotic.

"GO TO HELL!"

Over and over again, she heard the bat constantly hitting flesh. As her hits got harder, she began to severely damage the man, leaving no mercy. Over and over again, she would hear his screams of agony, pain, and sorrow. It was music to her ears. Until he was as the brink of death, the girl stopped, dropped the bat, and her sinister grin grew wider. She held the same knife she used to kill the man's wife in her hand. She wasn't even thinking anymore, she was just enjoying more of the screams of pain, as she repeatedly stabbed the man. On his arms, legs, and finally his chest, where the screams stopped, and so did his breathing. His body was completely motionless.

She killed them.

And she enjoyed every second of it.

But...

Angelica collapsed, and started to breathe heavily. Clutching her necklace.

'W-What h-happened...' she thought, 'Why am I so tired? Last thing I remember was—OH GOD!' her eye met a terrible sight. She saw both her adopted parents, brutally murdered, but how did it happen?

She looked down and saw that she was holding the knife, the bloody knife.

She killed them.

Angelica covered her mouth to keep herself from throwing up, and let out a scream of terror. She couldn't believe it, she murdered them. Or did she? She sat there, absolutely traumatized, staring at the lifeless bodies. She had finally broken out when she heard a door close.

'Oh no!' Angelica panicked, 'Gizelle! If she finds out what I did, I'll be in so much trouble!' she quickly glance around, and found a closet, she'd just have to leave them in there for now, and what about the blood? She then looked at the knife in her hand, and sighed.

'I have to make it look believable.' she assured herself. She pulled her shirt down a little, and slashed at her shoulder, leaving a big cut, as blood came down her arm. But what surprised her is that it didn't hurt as bad as she thought, it just felt like a little sting, but that's it. She tried again on her other shoulder, same feeling. No extreme pain. How?

Angelica just threw the knife in the closet and locked it, making sure nobody would open it. She begun to shed tears. It was still unbelievable that she killed them so brutally too. Why? Why her?

||All in due time...||

Angelica looked around, she could've sworn she heard someone. But nothing was there. She sighed, 'Am I going insane?'|

* * *

*Present*

"Dear god..." Jesse breathed.

"That's..." Jaden trailed off. What they had heard left them speechless.

Aster was baffled. He couldn't put the pieces together clearly. It wasn't Angelica...so who was it? How did she find out about this? And if it was her...then...

Angelica kept her eye shut as she held onto her arms, trying to make it as painful as possible, but it wasn't helping, even when pressing onto the injuries. She was visibly shaking, and as she pressed harder, blood began to seep through, but not enough for anyone to see. Aster saw this, and grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly, urging the girl to let go. Angelica felt this, and stopped grabbing her arms. She had expected them to start yelling, screaming, calling her a murderer, or a freak. But it never came. She looked up with a confused face.

Jaden and Jesse's expressions softened, they had been reassured that Angelica could have never possibly murdered her adopted parents like that, even if they treated her horribly. Her attention was turned towards Aster, who had a worried expression.

"Y-You guys...don't hate me...?" she asked, the boys all looked at her shocked.

"Of course not!" Aster exclaimed.

"Now why in the world would we hate you?" Jesse asked, "It wasn't your fault!"

"If there's anyone you should blame, it's your quote-unquote 'parents'!" Jaden said.

Angelica looked at the three, in her mind, she was looking at their qualities, what they are soulfully, 'Aster and Jesse, the kindness and selflessness of light, and Jaden, the once pure child has grown and found his rightful place, he is the gentle darkness, the one that has kept balance between light and dark in this universe. So...' Angelica looked down.

'What does that make me?'

Angelica perked her head up and gave a weak smile, hiding the fact that she was really upset on the inside, a part of her wanted to just lock herself in a room and never come out. But she didn't, she had to finish the story.

"Thank you..." she said, and her smile disappeared, "The fact that the person who killed them wasn't me is...partly correct."

The boys were now confused, so she continued, "Do any of you know about the legend of the child who was the resemblance of light and dark?"

They all were even more confused, Yubel appeared once again. Angelica looked, "You know, right?"

Yubel replied with a nod, the boys all faced her as she began to tell the story.

||People have all thought of this as a myth, and it has always stayed that way. You see, long ago, when the universe was still young, and light and darkness were introduced, a child was born, but it wasn't a human child. It was born in a completely different dimension.||

"Wait, but aren't there only twelve dimensions?" Jaden asked, Yubel shook her head.

||This dimension was special, it cannot be found by mortals, or even by me. Only the gods and goddesses that were originated from there can go. The goddess of elements was one the strongest, and she wished to pass on her legacy, her power. That's where the father comes in, the problem was that he wasn't welcome...because...||

"Because what?" Aster questioned, Angelica averted her gaze from everyone again.

"Do you believe in demons, in Hell?" she blurted out, they all looked at her, unable to answer.

||She asked that...|| Yubel continued, all attention on her again, ||...because the father...he was believed to be from Hell.|| Everyone gasped, she closed her eyes, ||As a matter of fact, it was told that he was called "Lord of the Underworld." Ring any bells?||

It took a while, but when they finally put it together, their eyes widened in shock. The father...

It was the devil himself.

"No...way..." Aster breathed.

Yubel decided to tell the rest, ||The goddess of elements was never introduced to the underworld, because her servants didn't want her to be tainted, and to look at such a horrible thing, so she always stayed in the heavens, never questioning a thing. But one day, the goddess found out, because she found him...Lord of the Underworld. It was an accident, but even so, everyone thought it was bound to happen.||

||Apparently, the devil wanted to spread his darkness everywhere, and would do so by having a child of his own. So he chose the goddess of elements to be the mother. She was too pure and vulnerable, because she had never heard of the underworld, even with all her wisdom and knowledge. In order to properly have a child with demon blood, the mother must have accepted. Now, she was never easily deceived by someone, but surprisingly, she accepted the lord. No one knew, and no one was supposed to know. But it spread quick, and a wise god came to the child, a girl. He announced to everyone what would become of her, she was destined to have great power, it can bring great peace and prosperity, but can also cause great chaos and destruction. It was never known to the god what path the child to make, but he simply said it was for her to decide.||

||Legend has it that every five thousand years, her soul is reincarnated into this world, she is the same girl, same appearance, same personality, same powers. She is always born again with the same gift from the mother, the gift of light, as well as power over earth, fire, water, air, and more. And also with her curse from the father, the curse of darkness, the curse of the underworld, to be a demon, if not, then she would have another side of her soul...There were many other things to this myth, but no one ever figured out what, they either gave up in searching or started thinking that this was all nonsense, so that's why no one ever mentions it anymore.||

"Wait, but this is all just a myth, right?" Jaden asked anxiously.

"Is it really true?" Jesse was a bit freaked out about it, too.

"Angelica...?" Aster said softly, the others turned their attention to the girl, who was gripping onto her knees tightly, and had tears in the corner of her eyes. The first time she opened her mouth to say something, nothing came out, so she waited, and tried again.

"That..." she barely spoke louder than a whisper, but since the room was so quiet, they were all able to hear her, "...t-that isn't a legend, i-it's true, she...she actually does e-exist..." her voice cracked, the boys were even more anxious.

"Angelica..." Aster hesitated, "do you..." the girl nodded.

"I...I know it's t-true because...the child...the child is me...my real mother is the goddess of elements...a-and my father...is...him..." she lifted up her hair, and took off the eyepatch that hid her left eye. It wasn't like her other eye, it wasn't even human, no...

It was a demon eye.

An eye that belonged only to creatures from the underworld.

They all gasped, utterly speechless, they didn't know what to do, or what to say, and the room grew very silent. Angelica had this covered up, but for how long?

By this point, Angelica just wanted to disappear, to never exist, to just die. She quickly put her eyepatch back on, and stood up, surprising the rest in the room.

"You have to believe me!" she cried, "I...I'm nothing like my f-father! I don't want to be like him! Please! I never asked to be like this! I never wanted to hurt people the way I did! I wish I could take it all back! I regret everything! I'm so sorry!"

She collapsed into a fit of tears, sobbing out loud, and shaking violently. The boys all pulled her into a tight group hug, they all whispered soothing words, telling her that nothing is her fault, and that they believe her, they believe every word. They were all on the floor, huddled into a hug for a couple of minutes, waiting for the girl to calm down. How couldn't they feel sympathetic? She never asked for such a heavy burden, or to be cursed at birth. All this time, she's felt such guilt for what happened in the past, and was never able to tell anyone for...who knows how long?

When the boys heard her breathing even out, and she stopped shaking, they all pulled back. She managed to give a weak smile, which was a real one, because she was very grateful to have friends like them.

"Thank you all so much..." she whispered, "...you have no idea how much this means to me..."

They all smiled back, and nodded. Jaden looked out the window and noticed that it was beginning to grow dark, and the sun was barely setting, "We should probably head back, it's getting late."

"I'm with yah Jay, I'm tired..." Jesse yawned, Angelica giggled.

"Well, now that you mention it, this day has really taken a lot out of me. I think I'm gonna sleep early today."

"Hm..." Aster looked at the girl, he didn't want to leave her, not just yet, "Is it alright if I stay?" Angelica blushed and nodded timidly.

Jaden and Jesse smiled at how the two acted around each other, they said their goodbyes, and left, leaving the two in the room. Angelica laid down on her bed and sighed, "Today was really something, huh?" she said, smiling. Aster softly laughed.

"Yeah, I guess it was..." he glanced at her arms, which were still wet. Wasn't the water supposed to be dried off by now?  
"What were you trying to do?"

Angelica looked and blinked, "What do you mean?"

"You were gripping onto your arms really tightly, trying to do something, and it looked painful too..." when the girl realized what he was saying, her expression changed, and she turned onto her side, facing the opposite direction of the boy.  
She knew what he was talking about, but she didn't want him to know what she would do to herself, it would be devastating, and Aster already had a lot on his mind. So she lied, once again.

"I...don't really know, I guess it was because I just wasn't thinking...and maybe it was to try and inflict physical pain, to drive my mind away from other thoughts..." Aster looked at her concerned. Was it so bad that Angelica had to hurt herself in order to get her mind off it? He slowly climbed onto the bed, and grabbed the girl's shoulder, moving her so that they made eye contact.

"Hey...if you need to take your mind off things, maybe loosen up, you can come to me anytime, okay?" he moved his hand and grabbed Angelica's. Said girl lightly blushed at the gesture, but still smiled.

"Okay Aster...I will..." her eye was glimmering faintly, but it still looked beautiful. The two stayed in that position, lost in each other's eyes, not noticing that their faces were only a few inches apart. But once they broke out of the trance, they pulled back, and blushed a bright red. After a few moments of silence, Angelica laid back on the bed, sighed, and almost immediately fell asleep.

Aster smiled softly, moving his hand again towards the peaceful girl's forehead, brushing away some of the bangs. This was probably the only times when he was able to see Angelica have a calm face, one that wasn't filled with pain, anger, misery or sorrow. This is one of the only moments where she doesn't have to worry about her past, or what path she will ultimately take. It was a heavy task, one that could change the fate of the entire universe, so Angelica needed this. It doesn't matter what other people say, Aster will always think of her as a bright angel.

He had barely noticed that he was also worn out, so he just laid beside her, not wanting to leave her side, and fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Author's Note: Finally off my sugar rush!

This was very angsty I know...I mean, jeez...I guess the rest will have to wait. What did you think about Angelica's real parents? In my mind, I'm thinking, 'Holy crap, if someone like this actually existed, then I wouldn't know what to do.' Oh well!

Thank you presea221.

Byyyeeee!


	9. Chapter 8

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 8**

Kórisatanikí: Wow, you actually did something right for once

Me: Watch it!

Angelica: You know she isn't going to listen.

Aster: Let's be honest, no one really listens to you outside of this room.

Jaden: Isn't that kinda mean Aster?

Jesse: Well...it is true.

Angelica: You too, Jesse?

Kórisatanikí: Point is, nobody likes to listen to her.

Aster: Exactly.

Angelica: Aster!

Me: DO YOU WANT ME TO STAY OR NOT?!

Everyone: ...

Me: *sigh* stop looking into my life alright?

Aster: Fine...

Angelica: Come on Aster! Nobody likes being invaded of their privacy!

Aster: I suppose...sorry.

Me: It's fine, I'll just start already.

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters or settings(except Angelica Rose). Oh and if there is anyone out there who's names are Gizelle and Robert, sorry! Don't be offended, the behavior of these characters in the story don't apply to you!

Warning!: Contains sensitive subjects, such as depression, self-harm, some very bloody stuff, cursing, and suicide. You get very disturbed by this? Don't read. Sorry. Also, if you happen to be in a religion that resents the devil, or if you don't like the mention of Hell, then don't read this either.

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
||...|| Spirit Talking  
|...| Flashback

Chapter 8...

* * *

"What...do you...want this time...?"

Aster woke up to the sound of someone mumbling, he thought it was just his imagination, so he closed his eyes. But then he heard it again, this time it was a bit louder.

"I can't...just leave me alone."

It wasn't in his head, he was sure that it was someone, so he sat up on the bed and looked around the room. It was dark, but he could still see through and remember what happened during the day. Aster had decided to stay with Angelica after she revealed her secret, but it was still unbelievable. She had the entire world—no, the entire universe on her shoulders, depending on whether she should follow the path of her mother, or father. The fact that Angelica was half demon and half goddess was also surprising, it brings the whole balance of light and darkness around her. But what bothered Aster more was what the legend had mentioned.

|...the darkness will slowly taint the light, making thy soul of no light, and will take on the role of leading the underworld, misleading people, and bringing everyone to the path of destruction and sin. Thou shall be of pure hatred, pain, and sorrow. But thou has a chance of relinquishing this threatening dark. The light can turn the evil darkness into a righteous darkness. One that does not wish to rid the world of light, but to keep balance between the two.|

Darkness tainting the light? Does that mean Angelica's demon half would slowly swallow her into the dark side? How is that possible?

"He...has nothing to do with it..."

Aster quickly turned his direction to the source of the voice, only to find Angelica holding onto the bedsheets, with a pained expression on her face. Who was "he"?

"No!" the girl yelled, which made Aster jump, "Leave him alone! Do whatever you want with me, but please don't hurt him!"

Tears began to fall down her cheeks, she tossed and turned, trying to get rid of whoever was talking to her.

||You're so pathetic! How do you expect to get through anything with such a soft heart?! That's why I need to GET RID OF HIM!||

Angelica covered her ears with her hands, and screamed.

"No! No! NO!"

Aster quickly grabbed her hands and shook her desperately, "Wake up Angelica! Wake up! Nothing's happening! Wake up!"

"AH!" Angelica sat up instantly, frantically looking around, absolutely terrified. She noticed Aster sitting in front of her and gasped. What she had told her...

"Aster!" the girl practically pounced on him, and Aster was shocked at the sudden embrace. Angelica held onto the boy so tightly, as if she were to let him go, he would just disappear into thin air.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" she cried, sobbing onto Aster's shoulder, "I don't want her to hurt you! I can't! I just can't! Please forgive me!"

Aster didn't know what to do, but to hug her back. It didn't make sense, was it her demon side that wanted to hurt him? Why is Angelica apologizing?

"You have nothing to be sorry for...none of this is your fault..." he whispered, but Angelica shook her head.

"No! I could've prevented this! If I would've just done what I was told, you wouldn't have to deal with me! You wouldn't be in danger!"

"Don't say that!" Aster pushed Angelica back so they were face to face, "What were you told to do?!"

Angelica's eyes widened, would she really tell him? What would he say?

...

||I'll help you with that...||

...

The girl grabbed her head, and let out an agonizing scream, a large wave of dark energy pushed Aster off the bed, as he fell, Angelica collapsed. When the silvered hair boy got up, he shook her violently, "Hey! Angelica! Get up! Come on!"

...

||Let's see how this turns out...||

...

She grabbed Aster's wrist, and sat up, looking straight into those cobalt blue eyes, and smirked, "It's nice to meet you, too."

'That voice...' Aster thought, 'This isn't Angelica anymore...'

"Who are you?!" he demanded.

The girl just laughed, "Did my lighter half not introduce me? How rude."

'Lighter half?' Aster eyes widened in horror, 'No...'

"You're..." the girl put her finger on his lips, which silenced him immediately.

"That's right..." she said, "I go by the name...Kórisatanikí."

It was true, both her eyes weren't like they were before, both were the same red demon eyes, filled with darkness that can swallow anyone whole. Her necklace radiated an immeasurable amount of dark energy.

Aster got off the bed and stepped back, bracing himself for anything that might be thrown at him. But the demon just sat there, snickering.

"Oh don't bother, I'm not here to kill you, not yet at least...I'm just here to tell you a little something about Angelica...the girl who you thought was so perfect."

"What are you talking about?!" Aster yelled.

...

*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

"Aster! Angelica!"

"Open up! Are you guys alright?!"

Jaden and Jesse had been warned by their duel spirits that the two were in danger, serious danger, and Yubel felt a power that was greater than anything she had ever felt before. So they ran all the way to the yellow dorms, hoping they weren't too late.

"Let them in..." the demon chuckled, "...the more the merrier."

The door burst open, and the two boys rushed inside, horrified at what they found.

"Aster? What happened?!" Jaden asked, "What's wrong with Angelica?!"

"That isn't her!" Aster retaliated, "This her demon half! Kórisatanikí!"

They gasped, and looked towards her, the demon smirked,

"Well...now that we got introductions out of the way...how about I tell you the sad story about a poor little girl who will never have her wish granted..."

"Wish? What wish?!" Jesse questioned, the demon raised her hand to the black necklace, and the room was surrounded in a thick black fog.

"This may come as a surprise, but it's the wish of death...to die, and to never be reborn again..."

They all stared at her, not wanting to believe what they heard...Angelica wants to die...

"Liar!" Aster shouted, "You're lying! Why would she ever want something like that?!"

"You don't believe me?" the demon sighed, "Look, I share a body with her, I know what she does to herself, because I could feel a portion of it as well. Take a look at this." she rolled up her sleeves, and the boys gasped again.

On her arms were many deep cuts, some even looked fresh, it was all over her wrists, some of them looked like it took time, while others looked as if impatient or rushed. Dried blood was around the edges of the cuts, some of the cuts even overlapped others, it was a complete mess.

"No..." Aster breathed, "Why...why would she do this...?"

"Let me show you."

A large black fog covered them all, as they were all transported to a different place. It wasn't Duel Academy anymore, but it looked like a school, a very old school.

"Do any of you guys know what school this is?"

"Yeah..." Jesse replied, "It's that school that was found completely wrecked, everyone in there died, and nobody knows how it happened..."

"Well I do." Everyone faced the demon girl, who had a sly smile on her face, "Watch..."

They all paid attention.

* * *

*1 week after the murder*

|"Poor girl...her real parents left her...now her adopted parents were found dead."

"I heard the only people she has are her older stepbrother and that slut."

"You mean Gizelle? Ugh, that girl is _such_ a stuck up."

"I know! Angelica has to _live_ with her! Can you believe that?!"

"The world should really give Angelica a break."

Gizelle was extremely irritated. Ever since her parents died, she had to deal with her stupid little stepsister. Robert had to get a job and stay at the house, because he was the closest one to an adult, he needed to care for the rest of the family. People at school have been feeling sympathetic towards Angelica instead of Gizelle, even though they weren't even her real parents. Word had spread quick about how badly the girl treated her younger stepsister. It was confirmed when Gizelle had burst in front of everyone during lunchtime.

"YOU THINK YOU'RE SO SPECIAL JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE PRETTY?!"

"I-I d-d-didn't say anything—"

"SHUT THE HELL UP! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD YOU LITTLE BRAT! NOT MY PARENTS! YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED A LONG TIME AGO! BUT NO! YOU HAVE THE WHOLE SCHOOL IN LOVE WITH YOU! I'M THE PRETTY ONE! I'M THE POPULAR ONE! GOT THAT?! SO DO US ALL A FAVOR AND GO FUCKING KILL YOURSELF!"

She screamed so loud that pretty much the whole grade heard it, and soon, the whole school knew about it. Gizelle had gotten suspended, as well as a good amount of time in detention. But that didn't matter to her, what mattered was that her reputation plummeted. Everyone was talking trash about her, some people came up to her and scream some names, or told her that she was such a bitch for saying that to Angelica. When she had been yelled at by her older sister, the thing that hurt her most was about how she's the one who should be dead, not her adopted parents. She believed that, because she's the one who killed them in the first place. Angelica left school that day, and she stayed in her attic, crying and sobbing, constantly telling herself that she was worthless, she didn't deserve to live. So, she cut her wrists for the first time, but it didn't hurt, it barely tickled. It was very weird. But she was very bothered by this, because she deserved to feel pain, but nothing came.  
So she stopped doing it after a while, with Gizelle still plotting revenge.

Another week had passed by, and Gizelle has had enough. She didn't care if she were to be expelled, as long as Angelica's school life was ruined, everything would be right. Gizelle had an idea, she would expose Angelica's left eye in front of the whole grade, she didn't even know what was hidden behind that eyepatch, but today, the whole school- hell maybe even the whole city would know. Everyone would apologize to Gizelle, and she would be the popular one again.

...

At least...that's how she wanted it to happen...

...

Gizelle had lead Angelica to the middle of the playground area, where all the kids were staring, some even ready to pummel the older girl if she tried to do anything. While the younger girl was confused, frightened, and hopeful at the same time.

'Maybe she wants to apologize...' she thought, '...or...this is probably another trick...'

"HEY! LISTEN UP!" Gizelle commanded, "You have all been lied to! This little bitch here has been lying to you from the start! She's not a sweet, innocent little girl, like you all thought!"

"Get a life!" Someone from the crowd yelled.

"Go find someone else to pick on, you slut!"

"Don't believe me?!" Gizelle snapped back, "Haven't you ever wondered about her eye?! Huh?!"

The children grew silent, because they have never really thought of that before.

The older girl scoffed, "See?! She's been manipulating you! Using her looks and charm to make you blind! This little whore just wanted all the attention!"

The crowd began to whisper, and Angelica was scared, because then people would start to criticize her, call her a freak, when all she wanted was to get through school and have some friends. But now all her so called "friends" were ditching her.

"That's not true!" she yelled, "I would never trick people like that! I just want to help people, have some good friends, and a good life! What's so wrong about—"

"CAN'T YOU KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT FOR FIVE MINUTES?!" Gizelle shouted, and Angelica winced, staying silent.

"I'll show the world what you really are! After this, everyone will finally realize what a lying bitch you are!" Gizelle reached out to grab the eyepatch that kept the eye hidden, and she ripped it right off.

What she saw scared her.

She wasn't expecting this, she thought it would be a scar or a missing eye, something that would make her look bad enough.

But this...this was ridiculous.

Everyone around her gasped as well. Nobody was able to see this coming, nor was anyone able to avoid it. They all saw it, and would never be able to forget it.

Angelica has a demon eye.

She isn't human.

She was...

...

Everyone screamed.

"MONSTER!"

"AHHHH!"

"OH MY GOD!"

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!"

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM US?!"

"GET OUT OF HERE YOU LYING FREAK!"

"EVERYONE RUN! SHE'S GONNA KILL US!"

"SOMEONE CALL THE POLICE!"

"NO! PLEASE DON'T HURT US!"

"SOMEONE KILL HER ALREADY!"

"MOMMY! GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

All the children were screaming, running, crying, and panicking. None of the adults who ran outside were able to grasp the situation, kids were too busy running away and yelling at the top of their lungs to explain. Some of the older boys came up to Angelica with sharp objects. Gizelle somehow found a large stick with a sharp edge, deciding to take matters into their own hands.

"GO TO HELL!" she pushed the stick straight to the girl's heart. But it never went through. Something had stopped the stick from even touching her skin.

A familiar black fog pushed them all back, leaving them on the floor, shocked.

"W-what just happened?!" one of the boys exclaimed. Before Gizelle could respond, they heard someone snickering. It was coming from Angelica, who was standing up, her hair covering her face, and her voice sounding distorted, no longer her own.

...

|The more the darkness shall feed on negativity and fear, on violence and sin, the curse will strengthen. By one point, thy soul shall spilt completely from the dark, making it a separate entity, with a body of its own, and also a heart. When that time comes, the two of the same soul shall not have tied fates anymore. The dark and light may do as they please.|

...

"That's not possible..." the demon chuckled, "Well...not in the way you think...I can go to hell whenever I wish..."

"S-stop speaking that stupid language!" Gizelle shouted, the girl laughed in return.

"It's the truth...I was born in hell...so being sent there isn't horrible at all...not for me at least..."

"Who-no, what are you?!" Gizelle demanded, the demon finally lifted her face, to show both eyes blood red and demonic.

"I carry on the devil's legacy, I have his blood coursing through my veins...I surpass any living mortal...my name...Korísatanikí."

In a blink of an eye, she managed to cover the entire school in an invisible shield, making sure nobody was to escape, as well as gather all the students, faculty, and the principal in one spot.

"I'll start with you boys first..." she glared at the boys barely holding onto their weapons, and trembling in fear.

Korísatanikí was very amused at this sight, "What? Is that fear I see? I thought you were supposed to be the toughest in this school. What a disappointment..."

"This...this is a trick!" One of the boys stated, "This girl's just trying to scare us! Let's go!" They all charged at her, and she cackled.

"You should know your places, I can squash you like a bug!" she swung her arm, three of the boys went flying in all directions, while the last one was grabbed by the neck in mid air, by the help of the new grown demon wings. "I overpower you in every way possible, you're just pathetic."

He was thrown at the ground, while the weapons begun to levitate, and they all shot towards the boys, stabbing them, and killing them. More screams followed, and many had begun to cry. One girl stepped in front, tears of anger springing from her eyes.

"How could you?!" she yelled, "That was my brother! He meant so much to me! And you just killed him as if he were a rat!" she grabbed the nearest object, and threw it towards the floating girl's direction. But she immediately caught it, and smirked.

"You wanna join him then? So be it!" the object pierced right through the little girl's stomach, and she collapsed on the floor, a pool of blood around her body. Another wave of screams came, as some kneeled next to the her body and cried.

"Angelica! Why?!" one of the teachers exclaimed, she happened to be fond of her, because she was her most excellent student, and was always willing to help in any way possible. She knew that Angelica was sweet, kind, caring and gentle. But this...thing was the exact opposite.

The demon cackled, "Why?" her laugh quickly into a growl, "WHY?!" the ground shook violently, as she grabbed many building parts, glass, weapons, anything that would kill. A dark fog surrounded the entire area. But how? How did no one on the outside see this? This was all insane!

"I'll tell you why!" she shouted, "All of you are liars! What you have been saying all these years, about being friends, about being there for one another no matter what, about being one big happy family where everyone is welcome...THAT WAS ALL BULLSHIT!"

She threw glass onto the teacher, as it shattered into a millions pieces, each piercing into the skin, then a large boulder came out of the ground and crushed a large group that were huddled together, leaving a huge splat of blood. Someone was stabbed by hundreds of small sharp items flying straight towards him, pinning him to a wall, leaving blood to flow down. Someone even had their head cut off, and stepped on without hesitation. The ground shook, the wind was blowing harder by the minute, and people were dying left and right. One was lifted into the air and crushed, spilling blood and crushed bones. Another group of kids were squished between buildings, suffocating and dying very slowly. Glass broke, screams of fear, pain, and agony filled the air, pleas and cries of mercy were heard every second, and laughter...laughter that was coming from the psychopath who was killing off so many children and adults, while having all the fun in the world. Guess who witnessed it all?

Gizelle.

She was scarred, all of this was happening right before her eyes, she was too shocked to move, to petrified to think, all she did was repeat one thing in her mind over and over again.

'Everyone is dead.'

'Everyone is dead.'

'Everyone is dead.'

'...'

'And I'm next...'

Many minutes passed by, but to Gizelle it felt like an eternity. The whole school was splattered with blood, completely broken. It was even catching on fire, thanks again to Korísatanikí. Nobody was alive anymore, some of their lifeless bodies were still on the floor, or hanging by an object. The area was lifeless...empty...even the air seemed dead. Korísatanikí was panting, but had a wicked grin on her face, she couldn't remember the last time she has ever had so much fun. Every minute of hearing screams and cries, it was amazing, she needed to do it again sometime.

She turned her attention to the terrified girl on the floor, and smirked, "Oh...I almost forgot about poor Gizelle..."

The demon slowly floated towards her, snickering, "To think...that all this happened because you couldn't keep your little mouth shut...it's quiet tragic..."

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Gizelle cried, as she tried to hide between a few broken walls, and curled up into a ball.

Korísatanikí frowned, "You expect me to have mercy? Looking back...you never had any second thoughts about torturing Angelica...did you?"

Gizelle refused to look at her straight in the eye, but still hung her head low, "I...she was taking everything away from me...a-and—"

"IS THAT YOUR EXCUSE?!"

Gizelle flinched and hugged herself tighter in her small space, crying even louder now. The demon made all the broken bricks and walls fly out, leaving the frightened girl unprotected.

Korísatanikí was now laughing maniacally, "You know who you remind me of?! Your dead parents! Guess it runs in the family then! Hahaha!"

Gizelle's eyes widened in shock and terror, "You..." she choked, "You killed them!"

"Now you get to see them again!" the demon grinned, "In Hell that is!"

With that said, she began to chant, but they weren't normal words, the chant wasn't in any language Gizelle knew of, and was terrified because of it.

"Lleh fo sezalb eht morf semoc taht niap eht...niap ecneirepxe meht tel...uoy htiw nwod meht grad! Yerp siht mialc dna pu esir dlrowrednu eht fo shtped tsekrad eht nihtiw peed llewd taht snomed!"

All of a sudden, a large pentagram appears, sealing Gizelle within it. She tried to break through, but nothing she did would work. Strange portals began to form, and out came many dark creatures. They were snarling and growling, some laughed and smirked, one of them(who seemed to lead the demons) licked it's lips. It looked at the demon girl, she smirked and nodded in return, "She's all yours..."

With those words of acceptance, all the monsters pounced on the helpless girl, biting, laughing, gnawing on her flesh, as a large portal appeared beneath them. Gizelle tried desperately to break free, but a mere mortal could never stand up to these creatures. She cried and screamed, hoping that someone came to save her, like they always have.

But no one came...

Because everyone was dead.

"This is all your fault..." Korísatanikí whispered, as the last of Gizelle's body was dragged in by the demons, "I hope you keep that in mind..."

The pentagram disappeared, and left behind a large pool of blood, even some burnt markings on the ground, but other than that...

There was nothing left.

Nobody was alive.

She killed them all.

But...what about Angelica?

...

She collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily. Her wings vanished, and so did the dark energy and fog that surrounded her. She slightly opened her eyes, her normal, light blue/green eyes, not knowing why she was so exhausted. Her hands and legs were trembling, and she could barely catch her breath.

'What...' she thought, but then something came to mind, 'Wait...this is the same thing that happened when...Oh no!'

She looked up, and screamed in absolute terror.

Everyone was dead. There was blood splattered in every direction, the buildings were completely destroyed, glass and weapons littered the floor, and there was a dead body in every corner. She recognized many of the corpses, and cried. She cried and cried, trying to convince herself that this was a nightmare, and that she would just wake up in her attic. Her dusty, small old attic, where she would wake up, tell herself it was a dream, and nothing more...

But this was real...

"I..." she breathed, "Did I..."

||Almost...||

She looked around, there was that voice again.

"W-Who are you?!"

||Who? I'm you...the darker side of you...||

Angelica was now confused and scared, "I don't know what you're talking about!"

||Let me put it this way...do you know who your real parents are? Haven't you ever wondered how you got that eye in the first place?||

The girl blinked, "N-No...I haven't..."

The voice chuckled, ||Well, those are the reasons why I exist...you see, I have never been an entity of my own, I've just been an alter ego of yours, your different personality. But as time went by, you've been exposed to pain, hatred, sorrow, anguish, and much more. That has caused me to gain power, but never enough. Until...||

"Until what?!" Angelica demanded.

||Heh...until you reached your peak. One thought of pure hatred finally gave me enough power to emerge...when you have been abused by your adopted parents and step siblings, you just wanted them to go away. But when your "parents" wanted to kill you, that made you snap. You thought, 'Why did I have to be stuck here? Why couldn't they just disappear? Why do I have to die? Their the ones who should die...they should go to hell...'||

Angelica's eyes widened and she froze. She created this...thing? Then it was her fault.

"So...all this happened because...of my hatred towards them...and to the entire world...?" she whispered, the voice scoffed.

||Took you long enough.||

"But why me?!" the girl shouted, and the demon just laughed.

||Who knows? You're parents just happened to meet on accident, and unfortunately, your father chose your mother. So they created you. Half demon, half goddess.||

"Wait..." Angelica gasped, "I heard about something like that! The devil wanted a child, so he chose the pure and wise goddess...the goddess of all elements...and they had a child who was destined to either walk path the road of darkness, or light...that child..."

||Is you.|| the voice finished, ||Whatever you do, affects your inner self, your soul, and your emotions. This can lead to bad and good influence, therefore, leading to your father's or mother's legacy. It's your choice, and I'm the curse. Your demon self that you created with your own feelings. I...let's just say...give a little shove in case you aren't aware of anything.||

"No..." Angelica breathed, "NO!"

||You should get out of there before people find you...we don't want you ending up in jail for life.||

The girl still had tears flowing down her face, her eyes were almost dead. She stood up, and happened to know how to make a portal, which was a bit weird. Guess it had something to do with knowing everything about her birth now. So she put her hand in front, and a black portal formed. But before walking through, Angelica gave one last look at the horrifying scene, she whispered, "I'm sorry...please forgive me..." and disappeared into the portal, just as it closed, police and ambulances covered the entire block in a matter of seconds. But the officers stared in disbelief, it looked as if a tornado hit the school, and nobody was even alive. The people living nearby claimed to have heard nothing, just a bunch of things breaking, even a few muffled screams here and there, but that's it. It was a terrible incident, and it left a mark on the entire city.|

* * *

*Present*

"After many years of investigating, no one was able to figure out how this happened, nor were they able to find out the culprit, if there was any possible way a human being could do this in less than an hour. Angelica wanted to turn herself in, but either the police wouldn't believe her, or I wouldn't allow it. Besides, a cell could never hold in a half demon for long...everyone would just die again." the demon chuckled.

Aster, Jaden, and Jesse were speechless again. She had done all of this, and was never able to tell anyone about it, she had to keep it in for as long as possible. What became of this school was cruel, but they couldn't hate the girl, not at all. It's not like she asked for any of this, and at least Angelica felt guilty about it, instead of laughing like a maniac, like her "other half".

"...Korísatanikí..." Aster faced the demon with worry clearly in his eyes, "...has Angelica..."

She nodded, "Yes she has, but I feel it would be better if she told you in person. I'll have my fun later..." she smirked, "I'll be seeing you all soon...until then...Sayonara." she let out one more laugh, before falling to her knees. Aster ran over to the girl and grabbed her shoulders.

Angelica groaned and grabbed her head, "Agh...not again..."

"Are you alright?" Aster asked softly, and Angelica perked her head up, only to be met with those beautiful cobalt blue eyes.

"Aster..." she gasped, "Wait...did that demon..."

Jaden sighed, "Yeah...she told us everything..."

"Everything...?" the girl repeated.

"Well..." Jesse continued, "Almost everything...but we know what Korísatanikí did to that school...to everyone there..."

Angelica's breath hitched, and Aster spoke up, "She...also told us what you do to yourself because of it..."

The girl opened her mouth, but then closed it again. She didn't know what to do, or what to say. She was stuck. 'Korísatanikí...she wants them dead...that's probably the only reason why she would tell them in the first place...'

||They're not the only ones who know...||

Angelica's eyes widened, and she quickly ran past the stunned boys, and towards the Slifer Red Dorm, where the others would most likely be at. Aster, Jaden, and Jesse chased after her, telling her to stop.

The girl kept running, ignoring her friends. She was hoping that what she heard wasn't the truth, that there was still time to explain everything. If the entire school knew about this, then what would happen to her? She began to run at a faster pace, determined to prove herself. But when she got to the dorm, she bursted through the doors, and was met with many confused, frightened, and maybe even angry faces. It had been too late.

"You..." Syrus breathed.

"YOU DEMON!" Chazz yelled, and grabbed Angelica by the coat, "We saw it! We saw everything! You killed all those people, and for what? Fun?"

"Let her go, Chazz!" Jaden demanded, and his friends looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean?!" Alexis exclaimed, "Jaden, this girl is a monster! Didn't you see what she did to all those innocent children?!"

"I say we get rid of the enemy!" Hassleberry raised his fist.

"No! You've got it all wrong!" Jesse said.

"What we saw was the truth!" Chazz shouted, "This girl is a murderer! And she probably came here to kill us all too!" he slammed Angelica towards the wall, as she let out a small cry of pain. Aster ran up to the black haired boy and shoved him off, while Jaden and Jesse held his arms, so he wouldn't try to grab the girl again.

"Did she possess you or something?! LET ME GO!" Chazz squirmed, trying to break free, but he failed. Aster had held Angelica's shoulders, "Are you okay?" he asked, but she didn't respond, she just kept looking at the ground.

"He's right..." she whispered, "I'm...a murderer...I should never have come here..."

"Stop kidding yourself!" Aster yelled, "That wasn't your fault! Angelica we—"

"SHUT UP!"

Everyone froze at the sudden outburst, and Aster just stared in disbelief, "Angelica...?" he gasped when the said girl faced him. Her eye looked dead, almost emotionless. There was something in that eye, but it was all dark. All that was in it...was pain, sorrow, and guilt. It no longer shined like the ocean in light, it no longer held happiness and joy, it no longer held any life.

"Never come near me again." Angelica deadpanned, "It's been made clear already, and I'm sorry." A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she turned towards the door, clutching her black necklace, " It's my fault for having high hopes. I never had a place...I could call home, never had...and never will." a portal appeared before her, and she jumped in, without looking back even once.

"Angelica!"

Just like that...she was gone.

* * *

Author's Note: Cliffhanger!

I legit scared myself after writing this. I was looking for mistakes, and I was reading the Korísatanikí scene and...damn it looked like I was possessed. My god...I hope this doesn't give you guys nightmares or anything. Cause I read this to my friend, and this was her reaction: 0_0

Yeah...she's not a big fan of blood.

This was a long chapter! And I know you're wondering, "Wait...what about Robert?" Well after he found out that Gizelle died in the "accident" he moved to their aunts house to live in. Though he didn't really last long, and Angelica ended up accidentally bumping into him again, which lead to more boiling anger, Korísatanikí appearing, and...well...death. So yeah, no one gets away from that demon. And every time Angelica would be questioned by the police, they either got nothing, or they died. So after a while, they stopped trying.

Where did Angelica go? Also, hopefully Aster doesn't kill Chazz...

Thank you for the reviews presea221. They are really appreciated!

Byyyeeee!


	10. Chapter 9

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 9**

Angelica: My god...what have you done?

Me: I'm sorry!

Aster: You better be!

Jaden: This is outrageous…

Jesse: No kidding…this is dark...

Me: *hides in the corner of the room* Holy crap...I didn't know I could write this...

Korísatanikí: *laughs* Oh this is BEAUTIFUL!

Everyone: WHAT THE HELL?!

Me: *groans* get out...why did I…? Oh jeez...

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters and settings, except Angelica Rose and Korísatanikí.

 **Warning: VERY Angsty. Contains lots of sensitive stuff. Suicide, self-harm, violence, and depression. If you don't like this, then don't read it, feel free to leave.**

 **Also, there are a bunch of things that can be bothersome for religious people(aka the Devil and Hell). So don't read if you are disturbed.**

 **Contains cursing as well, just saying.**

 **Oh and this isn't really a warning, but FLUFF!**

Angelica: Oh no...she's at it again.

Aster: But she hasn't even ate that much candy!

Me: WHO SAID I NEEDED CANDY?!

Angelica: *sigh* just start already before you pop a blood vessel.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

 _/Italics/:_ Singing

 _Italics:_ Others

" _Italics":_ Quotes

The song mentioned here is called "The Devil Within" by Digital Daggers. It's a really good song, and if you listen to it, you'll understand the scene more. Wow...all of the stuff I wrote above is a mouthful.

Angelica: Tell me about it…

Chapter 9…

* * *

" _The prettiest smile, hides the deepest secrets._

 _The prettiest eyes, have cried the most tears._

 _And the kindest hearts, have felt the most pain."_

* * *

"WHAT'S YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM?!"

They had never heard Aster curse so openly, or yell loudly like this, so this startled everyone in the room. It was very clear that he was angry, actually that was an understatement, he was _furious_. His eyes burned with rage, and he had his fists clenched so tightly that he would probably end up bleeding by now. Chazz was scared stiff, because all this anger was being directed towards _him_. If there was one thing that you should know…

 _Never_ piss off Aster Phoenix.

"Maybe if you would have kept that big mouth of yours shut FOR ONCE, we would have explained, but NO! You just HAD to say something! Maybe if you'd had actually USED YOUR BRAIN, Angelica wouldn't have run off to who knows where?! She didn't WANT to do any of that! She doesn't deserve her horrible fate! She doesn't deserve to be cursed! And she especially didn't deserve to hear WHAT YOU FUCKING SAID!"

The boy had pushed Chazz against the wall so hard that it was a wonder how it managed to stay in tact.

"Why can't you _not_ act STUPID for once?!"

"Why…" Chazz breathed, "Why are you protecting her? What she did was unforgivable…"

Aster slammed the wall, "THAT WASN'T HER! Even if it wasn't her fault, she _still_ feels guilty, she _still_ regrets it!" his voice cracked, and he sounded as if he was on the verge of tears, "Angelica is a kind, caring, and bright girl! She always puts her heart into what she loves! She has talent, and beauty inside and out! So _you_ have NO RIGHT to be saying SHIT!"

Aster grabbed Chazz once more by the collar, and slammed him harder against the wall. Jaden and Jesse managed to get a hold of the outraged boy by the arms, while Alexis was making sure Chazz wasn't hurt, and the rest were watching in shock and(for some)horror.

"Stop! This isn't making anything better!" Jaden yelled, trying to keep the silver haired boy under control.

Aster kept growling, and was cursing under his breath. But before long, he felt tears in the corner of his eyes. He shoved the two boys who were holding his arms, and ran out, hoping to find Angelica.

Jaden and Jesse were about to run after him, but Yubel appeared again, stopping them in their tracks.

||Let him go.|| the spirit assured, ||Right now, Aster is the only one who can truly open up the girl's fragile heart. But he needs to be careful…||

"Careful? Why?" Jaden felt anxious now, and Yubel sighed.

||Because she's close to breaking. Completely. Since the darker half of her is still and has been living within her heart, the darkness inside has slowly been spreading. Little by little, she has been losing her mind, what makes Angelica…herself. She's been losing her kindness, her will to care for others. But she had been fighting, that's why it hasn't seriously damaged her. But now…||

"...she can become just like that demon…" Jesse finished, and Yubel nodded in return.

||Hopefully, Aster can prevent that from happening, and hopefully, he can get to Angelica...before it's too late…||

* * *

*pant*

*pant*

She doesn't know for how long she was running, or how much more she would have to run.

*pant*

*pant*

But she had to get rid of them…

| "Why do we even bother keeping you?" |

"No…"

| "Do us all a favor and GO FUCKING KILL YOURSELF!" |

"No…"

| "MONSTER!" |

| "SOMEONE KILL HER ALREADY!" |

"No!"

| "You don't belong here...you don't belong anywhere...the world would be better off without you." |

"No! No! NO!"

| "MURDERER!" |

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She was running aimlessly, not caring where she was running, or where she was right now. All she cared about was getting rid of these voices, these taunting voices.

"Stop! Please! Leave me alone!"

Someone laughed, and in a second, she was in a dark void, a void that seemed to go on forever.

||It's painful...isn't it? Having your heart shattered to a million pieces by the people who you gave your trust to. They betrayed that trust, and that's always how it's gonna be...||

Angelica was breathing heavily, and she knew who the voice belonged to.

"What...what do you want now?!"

||Nothing. I just want to help you…||

"And why should I believe _you_?" Angelica shot back, but Korísatanikí just sighed.

||Don't you want the pain to go away? I am your other half, I'm here to aid you. And with how you are now...you need my help.|| Angelica paused. Should she really believe her? But...nobody cared anymore, and her demon half is all she has left.

The girl looked down, as in deep in thought. Just then, Korísatanikí took her form in the black void. Showing her demon wings, tail, and horns. She put a hand on her other half's shoulder, making the younger girl look up, staring right into those blood red demon eyes.

||Your heart is too soft. You wanted to make friends, find people who would care about you, or even love you. But all you got is heartbreak. You have been wasting your time caring, and protecting others, when in turn, they give you pain, and sorrow. They hurt you. Yet you would still care about them, not wanting to kill, nor shed a single drop of blood. You would value love and friendship over everything else, that's what led you to a world of hurt.||

"So…how do I stop it?" Angelica pleaded, and the demon smiled, still evil, but a bit more genuine and gentle.

||That's simple, Fos. All you have to do is give your heart to the darkness, and if you do this, you'll never feel emotional pain again. You'll be free from this torment, and we can work together, we will have the dark power combined to get rid of all of those who oppose us, and destroy those who you despise. You can do all of that, without feeling any sadness, or hurt.||

"How...how do I...give my heart to the darkness?" Angelica breathed.

||I know you've been thinking of doing this for a while anyway…|| Korísatanikí lightly chuckled,

||But I need you to end this life. End your life in this era. If you do, then when you are reborn again, you will be a being of darkness, just like me. We will be the same, and because of that, we will be merged. Therefore, you will never have to worry about your emotions getting the better of you, because the only emotions that you will have left are anger, and hatred. Maybe, even a drop of excitement for blood. But that's besides the point.||

The girl was silent for a moment, taking in all this information. A part of her was still in doubt, because this was the very same demon who killed off so many innocent people...wait...this is what she was talking about. Her heart was too weak, too soft.

"Why do you talk to me like you care?" Angelica deadpanned, and the demon replied with another sigh, and a snicker.

||Do you remember what I sang to you that day you left after what happened at the school?|| the girl blinked, but then recalled what she meant.

"Yes...I do." she said, remembering every word, and every phrase.

* * *

*A day after the school outburst*

|"But...why…?"

Angelica still couldn't wrap her head around it. She was half goddess, and half demon? Her parents weren't even human, and neither was she. Many had convinced her that gods, goddesses, and demons didn't really exist, but now that she was one of them, it was impossible to deny. And this...demon...did it really come from inside her?

||You still deny it?||

The girl jumped as she felt a cold shiver go down her spine, "I...I d-don't understand…"

The demon chuckled, ||Well then...shall I explain it to you in a way where you _will_ understand?||

Angelica silently nodded, and in a blink of an eye, she was transported to a dark, empty void. She stood up, and frantically looked around, "Where am I?!" She demanded, and a shadowy figure formed in front of her.

||Welcome to my conscious. One that I share with you. It was created when I was, which was when all your negativity began to bloom. It really was beautiful.|| the demon laughed, ||So let me get straight to the point, I am you, the other half of you that was introduced by your father, who you should already know by now. He bestowed upon you a curse, because you had demon blood inside you, it was fitting to have you become demon. But your mother was blocking the way, because of your other side, the other type of blood, one from the heavens. So, your father decided...to create me, and when the time was right, I would fully become real. It feels great to be alive!|| the figure flew around with what appeared to be demon wings.

"No...way…" Angelica breathed, and Korísatanikí snickered at the expression. She closed her eyes, and began singing, making sure the innocent girl heard every word.

…

/ _I will keep quiet_

 _You won't even know I'm here_

 _You won't suspect a thing_

 _You won't see me in the mirror_

 _But I crept into your heart_

 _You can't make me disappear_

 _Till I make you..._ /

…

/ _I made myself at home_

 _In the cobwebs and the lies_

 _I'm learning all your tricks_

 _I can hurt you from inside_

 _I made myself a promise_

 _You would never see me cry_

 _Till I make you..._ /

…

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

/ _Won't see me closing in_ /

/ _I'm gonna make you suffer_

 _This hell you put me in_

 _I'm underneath your skin_ /

/ _The devil within_ /

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

…

/ _I will be here, when you think you're all alone_

 _Seeping through the cracks_

 _I'm the poison in your bones_

 _My love is your disease_

 _I won't let it set you free_

 _Till I break you..._ /

…

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

/ _Won't see me closing in_ /

/ _I'm gonna make you suffer_

 _This hell you put me in_

 _I'm underneath your skin_ /

/ _The devil within_ /

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

…

/ _I tried to be the lover to your nightmare_ /

….

/ _Look what you made of me_ /

…

/ _Now I'm the heavy burden that you can't bear_ /

/ _Look what you made of me_

 _Look what you made of me_ /

/ _I'll make you see..._ /

…

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

/ _Won't see me closing in_ /

/ _I'm gonna make you suffer_

 _This hell you put me in_

 _I'm underneath your skin_ /

/ _The devil within_ /

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /

…

/ _The devil within_ /

/ _You'll never know what hit you_ /|

* * *

*Present*

"..."

"I remember…"

"You're the devil within."

"You're my other half."

"You'll always be a part of me…"

"And I'll always be a part of you…"

||That's right, Fos. And in order for us to really be one in the same, I need you to become a being of darkness, just like me. The only thing you have to do...is end this pathetic life in this useless era. There is nothing that can be done here anymore. All life here is meaningless. Do you understand?||

Angelica took a deep breath before replying, "I...I do...I understand...Skotádi."

Korísatanikí smiled, ||I haven't heard that nickname in _years_ , and it feels great to hear it again.|| she inched closer to the other girl's face, ||Because it isn't the same when other people call me that. Only _you_ are allowed to give me that nickname, and no one else. In return, I am the only one who can call you Fos. Isn't that right?||

"Yeah...I know." Angelica nodded, "In my past life, you were my only friend, and so I gave you that nickname, and you gave me mine. We were...inseparable...but why did you never remind me?"

||It was never relevant.|| the demon said, ||There wasn't any reason to remind you of that until now, because of what I told you to remember, you also gained back memory of your past life as well, or one of them at least. And don't forget, I'm incapable of _caring_ , the only exception is you, because you are my other self.||

"There's no reason for me to be here anymore…" Angelica whispered, "I'm useless. Everyone probably doesn't even care about me anymore, not even...Aster…" her voice trailed off, and she could feel herself tearing up again.

Korísatanikí was not pleased. She knew that the girl had feelings for Aster, that was the problem. And now she's more hurt than she probably has ever been, she didn't just like him. No...Angelica _loved_ Aster Phoenix, more than she had ever loved anything or anyone before. It made the demon sick to her stomach, but she didn't show it.

"W-Why must this world be so c-cruel!" The girl shouted in a shaky breath, and the demon decided to pat her back, in an effort to comfort her. It worked somewhat, though Angelica was still trembling a bit.

||Then how about this...we can destroy this world...obliterate it. Would that make you happy?||

"Well…" the girl looked down, "I...don't know."

Korísatanikí sighed, ||Don't worry, you'll have time to figure that out. Now...let's go. You know what to do, don't you?||

"Yeah…" Angelica whispered.

The demon smiled, ||Okay, I'll be waiting.||

With that, she disappeared into the darkness, and Angelica was transported back to a certain part of the woods, but she was still in Duel Academy.

"I guess...I should be going now…" She said, mostly to herself, and started walking.

* * *

"Angelica! Angelica! Are you here?! Please answer me!"

Aster was calling out, running through the woods. He looked through every tree, and every place where she could've gone to hide. But she was nowhere to be found, it was as if she just disappeared into thin air.

"Angelica! We're sorry! Just please come out and let me help you!"

He desperately cried out for the girl for what seemed like hours, but she didn't show, not a reply, not even any sign that she was there. Aster soon got tired, and leaned against a tree, panting.

"She...can't be...gone…"

His eyes starting welling up with tears, 'Why...why did she have to go…? I just...I just wanted to…'

*crack*

Aster looked up when he heard a crack, and saw something in the woods. There was another person...a person with familiar white hair…

"Angelica!"

As soon as Aster started running towards her, she ran away, and the boy was more frightened, 'Why is she still running away?'

"Wait! It's just me! I just want to talk!"

He hoped that this would make Angelica stop, but she still kept running.

"Get away from me, Aster! You don't want to see me right now!"

Aster felt something in his stomach, 'What? What is she talking about?'

"You don't want to know!"

The boy was startled at the comment, because he didn't expect Angelica to read his mind. He quickened his pace, running through branches that stood in the way. At one point, the girl in front had done something, which made a large tree fall right in front of Aster, almost crushing him. But that didn't stop him, and he climbed over, still determined to catch up. When Angelica noticed Aster was still chasing her, she made vines come out of the ground, and a large stone wall appeared. Hopefully that would stop the boy from running after her. But it didn't. Aster quickly untangled himself from the vines, and climbed over the wall. Finally, Angelica stopped in front of a cliff that led straight to the ocean. She looked back, and found Aster stopping as well, trying to catch his breath.

"Why did you follow me, Aster? I told you to never come near me again!" she demanded, and the boy looked up, a little smiled formed on his face.

"Did you really think I'd listen?" he said sarcastically, "I'm stubborn, you know. And besides…" his expression turned into a look of concern, "I really wanted to talk more with you. I know they all saw something they shouldn't have. I know they accused you of being a murderer, and a monster. But that doesn't mean that you are one! You don't have to believe a word that they say. Deep down, I know you're someone who cares about everyone! If it were up to you, all those innocent people wouldn't have died!"

"That's not the point." Angelica said, "I can't take back what I did. I'm the one who created this demon, she is a part of me. There's nothing I can do about it."

"But that's not—"

"STOP TALKING TO ME LIKE YOU UNDERSTAND!" Angelica yelled, and Aster looked horrified, "You don't know a thing! You don't know how much of a burden this is to me! You don't know how painful it is to live with this curse every single day! You don't know how much I just want to _die_ every day, but then realize that I _can't_. I hate my life! I hate that I was born! I can't get rid of my destiny, Aster! No matter how much I want to get rid of my existence, nobody listens to me! Because no one _cares_. I hear people every day, saying I should go kill myself! You don't know how much I _wish_ to be able to do that!"

Tears were running down her cheek, and she started shaking, "Every day, I have to lie to _everyone_. I lie about my feelings, telling them that I'm fine all the time. I lie about my parents, telling them that I'm happy with who I live with. I'm always faking my smiles, my laughs, and my actions! Because if I show what I truly feel on the inside, all they would see is sadness, they would see emptiness. Some people would even try _helping_ me. I do want people to care, but I don't want them using my problems as a burden! They might as well be carrying dead weight! I shouldn't even be able to _live_! I'm always hurt! I'm always being hurt by others, because the people I trust end up stabbing me in the back! I don't want to feel that pain anymore! I don't want it to keep hurting! And that's why...I agreed to do this…"

Aster felt his heart ache as he heard every word come out of the girl's mouth. He didn't know what to do. Angelica was obviously depressed, and to such an extreme level that she wants to _die_ so badly. He didn't know what to tell her, but he wanted to help. He wanted to help her feel better, to make at least some of the pain go away. The girl had to lie about her feelings, and keep them to herself. It must have been so...so much to bear. He was processing all of these words in his mind, and even though he was on the verge of crying right there, the last thing Angelica said stuck out.

"Wait, what did you agree to?!"

Angelica took a deep breath, and looked right at Aster, while tears were still flowing, she gave a weak smile, "I didn't want you to see me do this...but I guess it's too late for that." She pulled out something from her pocket, which made Aster gasp.

It was a knife. But not just any ordinary one, it had words inscribed on the black metal, it wasn't English, nor any recognizable language. It looked ancient, as if it was thousands of years old. The designs looked as if they were made by people many years ago, it couldn't have been a knife from the modern-day world. Where did she get it from?

"This knife is very special," Angelica looked at it with a sad smile, "this was designed to kill anything. And I mean _anything_. You see, I'm not allowed to die until I reach over the deadline of a thousand years old, nothing would kill me until then. Long ago, people were afraid of immortals like us, so they used sorcery to create this knife, dark magic. Because of the dark magic that was needed, they put a message on it, one that only certain people can read, if they know the language." She sighed, "It says:

" **We mortals are powerless**

 **Under the gods, and thy hands.**

 **But thou shall not know of our intelligence**

 **Until one of them lands.**

 **When thou shall receive this relic**

 **You will surpass an immortal's bound.**

 **The bound of never given death**

 **Finally after hundreds of years**

 **Of fearing punishment by the gods**

 **We shall give them tears**

 **We shall give them pain**

 **We shall give them...**

 **Death"**

Aster was frozen, "D-Don't tell me…"

Angelica softly laughed, "This won't _permanently_ kill me, of course. I'll just be reborn again in another five thousand years. But...I made a deal. With Korísatanikí, my other half. If I were to end my life in this time, then when I am reincarnated, I will be a being of darkness, not light."

"Why would you ever want to do something like that?!" The silver haired boy exclaimed, "You'll just become like that demon! Why would you make a deal with _her_?!"

"What do I have to lose?" The girl said, "Besides, if I become like her...then I won't have to suffer anymore. I won't be able to feel anymore emotional pain, and that's all I want. Because I've been betrayed so many times, I don't think I can take anymore heartbreak. And...I remember something from my past life."

"Your past life?" Aster asked, "What does that have to do with this?"

"Well…" Angelica continued, "In my past life, Korísatanikí was my only friend. I was all alone in that time, I was an outcast. When I found out my origins, we grew close, and she always had my back. But then I was murdered, because the others found out I was an immortal. So they searched desperately for this knife," she held the said object in the air, "when they did, I became the hunted. At first, Korísatanikí wanted to kill all them off, but I couldn't blame them for wanting to get rid of me. So I let them assassinate me. Of course, she wasn't happy with this, so she was always hard on me after. That's why she was always acting like _that_. It was all for my own good." She reached for her eyepatch and took it off, revealing her demon eye.

"And now...I owe her. So…" she held onto the knife with a harder grip, "So now I _want_ to do this."

"B-But…" Aster breathed, "Angelica...you can't…"

"I'm sorry…" Angelica looked back at the boy. Her tears now sparkled in the rising moon, "Thank you, Aster, for everything. Even if it was for only a short time. I didn't deserve your kindness, or your compassion, but I am still grateful for it…" she raised the knife, till the tip pointed straight at her heart.

"ANGELICA!"

She closed her eyes.

"Sayonara"

…

…

…

…

…

...

'Why...Aster?'

…

'Why did you stop me?'

…

'Why do you still care about me?'

…

'Do you…?'

* * *

" _Your skin isn't paper_

 _Don't cut it_ "

" _Your size, your body, isn't a book_

 _Don't judge it_ "

" _Your life isn't a movie_

 _Don't end it_ ".

* * *

Angelica hadn't expected Aster to do this.

But he proved her wrong.

He had run up to the girl, grabbed the knife, threw it off the cliff, shoved her, and pinned her to the floor by her wrists. And as Angelica was trying to process what just happened, she felt something drop on her cheeks. She had realized that it wasn't wet, but they weren't her tears, they were Aster's. He wasn't able to hold it in anymore, he was crying, because of what could've happened if he hadn't done anything. It hurt him to see Angelica like this, it hurt him to hear all those words coming from her mouth. It hurt him to see her doing _this_.

"Listen to me!" Aster yelled in a shaky voice, as more tears sprang from his cobalt blue eyes, "Don't you _ever_ do this again! You hear me?! Don't you _ever_ try killing yourself! Because what you said is a lie! You aren't a burden! Just because of this, you shouldn't think about ending your life! You're right, I don't understand what it's like. But I want to! I want to _help_ you! I _care_ about you! Please, just let me help you! I...I…"

He sat up, releasing the girl from his tight grip. Angelica also sat up, and looked at Aster in disbelief.

"Aster…"

The said boy looked at her again, taking in how breathtaking her eye was under the moonlight, "Angelica, you're not a monster. No matter what any else says. You're beautiful, and kind. If you turn into an emotionless demon, you'll lose everything that makes you... _yourself_. Even if people try hurting you…" he reached his hand out and caressed the other's cheek, wiping away some of the stained tears, "I'll be here, with you. When you're sad, I'll be there for you, because you're not alone anymore. No matter what happens, I'll never leave your side."

"You…" Angelica breathed, "Y-You promise…?"

"I promise…" Aster smiled, "I won't _ever_ leave you. You're too precious to lose, you're too bright to be left in the dark. I will _never_ hurt you like other people have. Because I don't want to lose you."

"I…" the girl put her hand on the other's that was placed on her cheek, "I don't...deserve your friendship, Aster."

"No...you don't…" he pulled Angelica closer, "You deserve more."

Angelica had practically jumped into Aster's arms once more, and the other responded by wrapping his arms around her. She had no tears left to cry, but her heart felt so...warm, and complete. This was a new sensation she had never felt before, but it was just...right. Aster was feeling the same, and he would finally express it.

Angelica pulled away a little bit from the embrace, and looked straight into those piercing blue eyes that she loved so much. She was looking inside, trying to find any hint that he was lying, but failed. Instead, she found a burning determination, and something else, something...new.

"Angelica…" Aster said soothingly, "I've felt this way from the moment I first saw you." He cupped her cheek with one hand and intertwined their fingers with the other, "I saw your beautiful smile, your sparkling eye, I heard your angelic voice, and saw your bright personality. I knew you were special. And…" he softly chuckled, "wow...I didn't even know I could bring myself out like that. Well…you know what they say...actions speak louder than words...so…"

Angelica blinked in confusion, "What do you—" she was cut off when the boy did something that took her by complete surprise, and when she felt something warm on her lips, she realized that…

He kissed her.

The girl had a bright red blush on her cheeks, and was slowly comprehending this in her brain. But by instinct, she closed her eyes and kissed back, holding on to the other's hand. Aster had moved his arm around the other's waist, pulling her closer to him. Angelica had wrapped her arms around the boy's neck, as they still kept their lips connected.

Finally, when they were running out of air, they pulled away, and looked into each other's eyes once again, as they were catching their breath.

"Angelica…" Aster smiled, "I...I love you. I love you with all of my heart. Nothing will change that."

"I…" Angelica smiled back, "I love you, too. I'll love you for as long as I live."

The girl rested her head on the other's shoulder, and sighed in content. Aster put his head on her's, and also sighed. They laid there for a few moments, just appreciating each other's presence, and enjoying their warmth. Then, something crossed Angelica's mind.

"Jaden and Jesse are probably worried about us." She said, "You think we should go back?"

"Not to the red dorms." Aster replied, "I really don't want to see Chazz's stupid face right now."

"What did you do to him?" Angelica looked up, the boy shook his head.

"I was actually about to kill him. But no, he's still breathing." Aster smiled when her heard the girl let out a laugh.

"Wow, you were _that_ mad?" she chuckled, and the other looked back at her.

"Why wouldn't I be? His tiny brain can't understand anything, he took everything the wrong way, _and_ made you run off."

"I guess…" Angelica smiled, "Thank you for doing that."

"Anything for you." Aster replied, and they both got up, and walked to Angelica's room, hand in hand.

* * *

Once the two got to the room, they immediately got on the bed. Angelica was already worn out, though she had just realized it now. Aster saw how tired the girl looked, so he climbed in, covered them with the blanket, and let Angelica cuddle with him.

"I'm really lucky, to be with you." Angelica whispered, "Out of all the girls you could've been with, you chose me."

Aster chuckled, "Same here, you could've easily gone out with any boy at this academy, but you went for me. And I'm glad to have your heart."

He kissed the other's forehead, as the girl nuzzled into the boy's chest, listening to the rhythm of his heart. That's how she told herself that this was real, and not some dream that would never happen. All of this was real.

"Goodnight...Aster…" she said, and closed her eyes as she fell asleep. Aster softly smiled at the angel that was in his arms.

"Goodnight, my beautiful light."

* * *

"Where do you think they can be?"

"Hopefully not dead…"

"No! They're alive! Maybe…they're at Angelica's room?"

"It's worth a shot…"

Jaden and Jesse had been back in the red dorms for a while trying to explain the whole situation to their friends, without them going on another rage or panic attack. After what seemed like hours, they decided to go find the two. So now they were walking to the Ra Yellow dorms.

"Hey Jess," Jaden said, "You think…Aster and Angelica are alright?"

"We just gotta hope, Jay." Jesse replied, though he was a little unsure himself.

When they got to the door of Angelica's room, they found that it was a little bit open. They exchanged glances, before slowly opening the door. The two boys felt themselves smiling as they saw the couple cuddled up in bed, obviously asleep and tired.

"Well...it's about time." Jesse whispered.

"They look nice together." Jaden said, "We should leave them be until they wake up."

"Yeah, and…" Jesse continued, "let's not tell the rest just yet, _especially_ Atticus."

" _Definitely_ not Atticus," Jaden chuckled.

They closed the door and began walking out, and as they were going back, Jesse was deep in thought, 'I wonder if I'll have anyone special like that, I mean, I have Jaden and all his friends but…' he shook his head, 'Why does Jaden always come to mind when thinking like this?'

"You okay, Jesse?"

Said boy jumped a little, "Y-Yeah! I'm fine!"

Jaden was not convinced, but decided not to push it. So they kept walking, staying silent the rest of the day.

'I wonder...can we be anything more…?'

* * *

||It seems Fos has found new love...how sweet.||

…

||Hahahaha…||

…

||Well...that's too bad.||

…

||Because once that Aster Phoenix is gone, she'll never be able to love again.||

||She'll never see it coming, and once she finds out...it'll be too late, for both of them. It will be so…much… _pain_...it'll be perfect.||

…

||Hahahaha….||

||Ahahahahahahahaha…||

||AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA||

* * *

Author's Note: Omg YES! They kissed! After all of that, Angelica deserves it!

Took me a while to get this chapter up cause the site was bugging out on me, it wouldn't work, so I had to wait a day and it works now! Yay! I actually thought my whole phone was screwed for a second. Lol but it works fine.

Couldn't help but put in a drop of Spiritshipping at the end there, I couldn't resist! This took longer than I had wanted, and now I got to do that project thing...dammit…

Well...Korísatanikí is not happy.

I know this was _really_ angsty, I don't know how I can write this stuff so smoothly. It just all comes out, and with the kind of person Angelica is, it was all flowing out of me. But hey! At least there _was_ fluff! I'm not _that_ mean! My mom's birthday was two days ago too, so Happy Birthday mom! My birthday is almost in this month, it's in like...7 days, so yeah...that's fun! So much stuff is coming up that it's insane! It's kinda hard to keep track of it, _and_ write my chapters.

Next chapter will not be angsty, I promise. It'll be more about the friends and the academy finding out about the new couple, a few of Atticus's weird moments, apologies, and more stuff. It'll be a lighter chapter!(that is...unless Korísatanikí wants to keep being a b*tch)

Korísatanikí: WHAT?!

Oops...

Thank you for the reviews presea221!

Byyyeeee!


	11. Chapter 10

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 10**

Me: I promised a lighter one, and that's what you got!

Angelica: Well it's certainly better than the last two.

Jesse: The rest are disturbed, it ain't gonna change unless you do something about it.

Jaden: And I thought my life was messed up.

Angelica: Oh, you have _no_ idea.

Aster: Um...alright then...can you start?

Me: Sure, I was just getting to that.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters and settings, except Angelica Rose, Khartai, Fotiá, Neró, Gisa, Aéras, and Korísatanikí.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

" _Italics"_ Quotes

| _Italics|_ Dream

/ _Italics_ / Song

The small piece at the end is a part of the song "Pacify Her" by Melanie Martinez.

This chapter doesn't need a warning, but I'll just put a heads up. There is lots of romance, fluff, hints of yaoi and boy love(if you look hard enough), and some stuff that doesn't need to be pointed out right now. I know some of the stuff _is_ going to be a bit corny, but that's what makes this romance.

Aster: *blushes* Um...ok then…

Me: You're too adorable when you look flustered.

Angelica: *glare* What?

Me: *gulps* Uhh…nevermind...on with the chapter!

Korísatanikí: Man...this is _boring_.

Me: No one asked you, so at least stay the hell away from _this_ one.

?: Doesn't mean I won't be causing problems *smirks*

Aster: Oh crap…

Jaden: Who in the—

Me: You'll find out…

Chapter 10!

* * *

" _1 Solar System"_

" _8 planets"_

" _1 Earth"_

" _7 continents"_

" _204 countries"_

" _And somehow…I met you."_ 3

* * *

*The next day…*

Aster slowly stirred from his sleep when he saw a light in the room. It was sunlight coming from the window, which meant it was already morning. He looked down to find Angelica peacefully resting in his arms, and couldn't help but smile. There were no nightmares that night, and they both slept perfectly, so maybe this day would be better than the last ones, it wouldn't hurt to hope. He slowly stroked the girl's bangs, feeling the soft hair slide through his fingers. He then leaned down and lightly kissed her forehead, and even though this wasn't his intention, it had woken the other up. She opened her beautiful sparkling eye, and looked at Aster with a smile.

"Hey...good morning, Aster." She said, and the older one gave a quick kiss on her cheek.

"Good morning, Angelica." He said tenderly, as they both sat up, and interlocked their fingers.

"That's actually the best I've slept in a while," Angelica said, "maybe you're a lucky charm."

Aster chuckled, "I wouldn't say _that_." He leaned closer, "I think you're _my_ lucky charm though."

The girl lightly blushed and laughed nervously, "Do you say that to _all_ the girls?"

"I'm not that kind of person." The other responded, "Sure girls are always following me, but they just do because I'm popular, and because they're like 'He's so hot!'" He mocked a fan girl's voice, and that made Angelica laugh.

"I know! Same situation here, except random boys and adults think I'd be good in bed with them." She gagged, even Aster cringed, "It's disgusting, not to mention I was _forced_ to sell my body a long time ago, and I wasn't even a legal age to be doing that."

"That must have been hard." The boy sighed sympathetically, and Angelica nodded in return.

"Oh well, there wasn't really anything to do at the time. But I could never forget the greedy look on the men's faces when they saw me." Aster rubbed her hand softly, and she responded with a smile.

"On the plus side, some of them got arrested for contributing in illegal act. I had a teacher who got arrested, to which I wasn't really surprised."

"Why? He was a teacher." Aster asked, and Angelica shook her head.

"From what I've learned in all my years of being around this planet, not everything is what it seems. The teacher seemed nice enough, heck he even dressed up as duel monster one day," she laughed at the memory, "But I found him in a _strip club_ , he was totally drunk and looked at the women as if they were giant statues of gold. Some student in my class followed me there, took a picture, and showed the rest of the grade. I mean, you can't blame them. It _was_ a bit funny when he saw the photos taken, his face was priceless." She laughed again, and Aster looked a bit shocked.

"Didn't know you can be that evil." The girl looked at him, but then gave a genuine smile.

"I'm not _evil_. That teacher got what he deserved anyway, he had it coming. Besides, he's probably been released, or only has a few years left." She sighed, "All of that is in the past now. And now that I believe that I have a future, I plan to make it worthwhile." She suddenly hugged Aster, "I can't do it without you."

"And you won't." The other said, hugging her back, "I love you."

"I love you, too."

They pulled away slightly and kissed each other, enjoying the calm and loving moment. When they needed air, they broke apart, and smiled warmly at each other.

Something came to Angelica's mind, and she looked down, "What am I going to do about everyone else?"

Aster then remembered about the others, who were probably still not comfortable about the situation, he sighed, "Honestly, it depends. They are all different. Chazz is insanely stupid, Syrus is the type to be paranoid, Hassleberry is literally part dinosaur, Jim is calm, Axel is always aware of everything, Alexis is apprehensive, and Atticus is...well…I don't really know how to describe him."

"Hmm…" the girl thought, "Well...guess we'll just have to see what happens…"

"Are you sure? I don't want you to feel hurt." Aster caressed the other's cheek, and Angelica smiled.

"We won't know unless we try, right?" She said. The boy was still concerned, but he decided that she was right. He nodded.

"Alright. But I'll be by your side just in case." The other hugged him quickly again, before going to the bathroom to change. While she was in there, Aster decided to call Jaden in advance. He grabbed the device(don't know what it's called), and made the call. It took a while before someone picked up, and it was the duelist himself.

"What's up, Aster?" The brunette asked, and smiled, "You and Angelica got a good rest, huh?"

Aster blushed and was startled at the comment, "W-What?! D-Did you—"

"It's cool." Jaden assured, "Jesse and I went to check up on you an hour after you left, and we just saw you two together, so we let you be." The silvered hair boy sighed, but perked his head back up.

"Wait! Did you tell anyone?" He urged, and the other laughed.

"Of course we didn't! That's _your_ job, not ours!"

Aster secretly felt relieved, then he focused to why he made the call in the first place, "Hey Jaden, I need your help in this."

Said duelist tilted his head in confusion, "With what?"

"Well…" Aster paused, "Angelica wants to talk to everyone else about what happened yesterday and…" he stopped, but Jaden didn't need anymore information to know what he meant.

"Oh...right…" He sighed, "We were talking to them while you two were gone. For the first half, they wouldn't believe a word we said. It took some time, but I think they understand, I'm not entirely sure though…you know how careful they can be, especially after… _that_ …" he looked down, changing his mood.

Aster knew what Jaden was referring to. The incident where Yubel was going after Jaden, and that led to a lot of things that he still has trouble talking about. That's the reason why no one ever brings it up anymore, it had left a mark on all of them, though they choose to pretend as if it never happened. Even so, they all grew closer, and appreciated each other more. Jaden was more grateful than ever to have his friends, and he had even matured, but still kept his carefree like personality that drew everyone to him.

"Just…you and Jesse come with us, we might need the extra support." He replied, changing the subject a bit.

"Sure," Jaden looked up and forced a smile, "we'll be there. Later!" With that he hung up.

Just in time, Angelica had come out of the bathroom and looked at Aster with a smile, "What was that?"

"I was just calling Jaden to let him and Jesse know that we're going to the rest to talk." The older one said, "They'll be there, too."

"Alright then! Let's go." The girl took his hand in hers as they walked out the door, on their way to the Slifer Red Dorms.

* * *

*At the Slifer Red Dorms*

Jaden sighed as he laid back in bed, putting the device beside him. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to bring up what happened back then. Aster seemed a bit concerned. But he couldn't just _forget_ , and act like it never happened. It always made him feel empty, and he would feel a bit sick. Just the thought of losing his friends _again_ was devastating. And…

"Jesse…" he whispered to himself. That was probably the most frightening thought out of all of them, he didn't _ever_ want to lose Jesse. If he lost his best friend again, he didn't know what he would do. Actually, the nightmare he had a while ago came rushing back, he remembered seeing Jesse cry for help, and he just faded away with one last word…

 _|It's your fault._ |

Jaden felt tears forming, but tried his best to hide them. He just couldn't lose Jesse…

"Mornin' Jay!"

Speak of the devil…

Jaden didn't want to look at him, so he just took a deep breath, sat up, and tried to pull off his normal energetic attitude, "Hey Jess! Aster wanted us to stay here and help him and Angelica with talking to everyone else. You okay with that?"

"Sure. No problem." Jesse replied, but then he noticed that Jaden wasn't looking at him, "Somethin' wrong?"

"No!" The brunette replied, maybe a bit too fast, "Nothing's wrong!" He looked up and forced another smile. But Jesse knew that his smile wasn't real. He frowned.

"Are you sure?" He asked again, but just got a nod from the other, "Alright then…let's go." He turned and walked to the door, but before he could open it, he heard him.

"Jesse…?" Jaden said, and got up.

"Yeah? What—" Jesse turned around, but was stopped mid sentence when Jaden ran up and hugged him, almost making him lose his balance.

"J-Jaden?" He stuttered, looking at his friend with wide eyes, as he began to blush.

Jaden didn't answer at first, blinking away the tears in his eyes. But then he breathed out, and spoke, "Sorry…I just…" he pulled away and crossed his arms in an uncomfortable manner, "I don't know what got into me…and…" he looked at the ground, while emerald eyes were still staring at him in shock and confusion.

'Why did Jaden just hug me all of a sudden?' Jesse wondered, 'Was he thinking about something? That might explain his attitude. But…did it make him think about _me_?' He sighed, 'Well…it didn't bother me…it actually felt…nice…'

He walked up to Jaden and put a hand on his shoulder, making the brunette look at him in confusion.

"Y'know Jay…" Jesse smiled, "If you wanted a hug, you could've just asked. If it'll make you feel better."

Jaden smiled genuinely, to which Jesse was secretly thankful for, "Thanks, Jess…I don't know I just…couldn't help myself I guess…"

Jesse softly laughed, "It's fine, really."

For a few moments they stood there, not taking their eyes off each other. No words were needed at the moment. Jaden was appreciating his best friend's presence, and the fact that he was still here. He couldn't lose Jesse, and he wouldn't. He wouldn't let anything else take him again. That was a promise he had made to himself.

Finally, after many minutes of silence, there was a sudden knock on the door that made the two boys jump.

"Jaden? Jesse? Are you guys awake?"

"We need to talk about something."

They both glanced at the door, then at each other again.

"Isn't that Chazz?" Jesse whispered.

Jaden nodded, "Yeah, and it sounds like Axel is with him. He said they needed to talk with us."

"It's probably about Angelica." The other replied, and they both walked to the door and opened it to see, sure enough, Chazz and Axel standing there. But at the bottom of the stairs, they found everyone else, Syrus, Hassleberry, Jim, Alexis, Atticus, and Bastion.

"What's up?" Jaden asked, and Axel sighed.

"It's about yesterday. We feel that _some_ people..." he glared at Chazz, "were overreacting."

"Yeah." Jim continued, "We wanna talk to the poor girl. It ain't her fault after all."

"Well, that's good." Jesse said, "Angelica and Aster are already on their way. So it won't be long."

"Okay then…" Syrus looked down, feeling a bit uncertain. They were all feeling the same. How were they going to apologize? Sure it would've been simple just to say sorry and move on, but it wasn't that easy, especially with how Angelica reacted yesterday. What if they weren't truthful? What if something went wrong? With all of these similar thoughts going through their minds, they hadn't noticed a pair approaching them.

"Hi, everyone."

They all jumped and faced the source of the voice, and as if thoughts were summoned, Angelica was standing there, with a faint smile, with Aster standing beside her as well.

Then a feeling of pity and guilt rushed through Chazz at the sight of the girl. He had acted so roughly towards her, without even asking for an explanation. How was _he_ going to apologize? Especially considering the cold and blunt person he is, it wouldn't just come out normally.

"Angelica…" Alexis began, "We…we wanted to say sorry to you…for yesterday."

Bastion nodded, "We jumped to conclusions too fast. We should've waited for your reasoning."

Hassleberry joined in, "It's never right to abandon a soldier on the battlefield."

"We'd like to start over with you." Atticus said, "You know…get to know you more, as friends."

'Friends…' Angelica thought to herself, 'That's right…'

"I think you're a great girl." Jim added, "And now that we got the whole picture, we know you mean no harm."

"None of that was your fault." Syrus smiled, "We know that now. We're all really sorry for the way we treated you yesterday."

"We won't do something like that again." Axel said, "Rest assured, we won't be careless next time."

Angelica's smile grew brighter as she heard all those apologetic words. She knew they meant it, and that they were being sincere.

"Thank you all…for apologizing to me, and for believing in me. For believing that I'm not the monster you all saw." She said, and it made everyone smile back in relief. But then Jaden glanced at Chazz, who was still feeling uncomfortable, and hearing everyone else saying their apologies wasn't helping. The black haired duelist noticed Jaden's eyes on him, and sighed, knowing what the other was going to tell him. He walked past Axel, down the stairs, and up till we was standing a few feet away from Angelica. Aster was about to go up to him and scold, but the girl looked at him, telling him not to, so he stayed still, slightly glaring at Chazz. Angelica faced the boy in front of her again, feeling a bit nervous.

"I…" Chazz hesitated, then all of a sudden, he bowed in front of Angelica, shocking the rest around him, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for attacking you the way I did yesterday, it wasn't cool at all! I should've just waited, but I just became angry and pushed you. I opened my big mouth like I usually do. Forgive me!" He said all these things without really thinking, but he couldn't just stand there and _not_ say anything. Even for someone like him, harassing a girl because of a false assumption was low. Besides, Angelica was in a fragile state at the time, that only made matters worse. And when Aster has lashed out at him, it made him think about what he did. So it was now or never to say sorry.

Angelica blinked in surprise. She didn't expect Chazz to do _this_. From what she had gathered, he was usually a brutal person, who didn't really care about other people's feelings. But now he was bowing, apologizing to her truthfully. It actually brought a smile to the girl's face.

"I forgive you." She said, and Chazz stood up straight, "I forgive all of you. I can't bring myself to hold a grudge against any of you, nor can I blame you for the way you reacted. I'd probably react the same way. It's only natural, because nobody ever acts like a complete monster, at least…in normal people's standards." She giggled, "Point is, I'm not mad at any of you. And I'm really glad to have you as my friends." She gave off a bright smile, which made everyone feel assured, and they couldn't help but smile back.

Aster smiled as well, glad that everyone was alright with each other. He walked behind Angelica and put an arm around her shoulders, making eye contact with the girl. Then Atticus smirked.

" _So…_ " he said teasingly, "are you two a _thing_? I'd really like to know~"

Alexis faced palmed, "Oh no…"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Aster deadpanned. Syrus looked at the couple in curiosity.

"I wanna know, too." He said, "Didn't you go to Angelica after she ran off? What happened after?"

"Not him too…" Jaden muttered.

"Yeah!" Atticus cheered, "You guys are _cute_ together! I wanna know the details! It's _love_ at first sight!"

"Aaaaannd…there they go." Jesse sighed.

"Stop being such a creep, lover boy!" Aster scolded. But unfortunately, that didn't go through Atticus's head.

"Come on!" The older boy said innocently, "This is a _perfect_ match! What are you two planning to do together?" He thought about something, and then made a snap with his fingers.

"You know what I think?!" He exclaimed, "I think Angelica would make a _great_ mother! Don't you~?"

Said girl and Aster both blushed furiously. Axel snorted and looked away, Jim covered his mouth with the back of his hand, Syrus had his hand over his face, Bastion was trying his best not to laugh, Chazz looked at Atticus in disbelief, Hassleberry smiled and faced the other direction, Jesse and Jaden were looking each other, trying not to burst out laughing at how embarrassed the couple looked, and Alexis walked up behind her brother and smacked him at the back of his head.

"Ow! What was that for?!" The taller one replied, "It was just a compliment!"

Everyone couldn't hold it in anymore, and they all burst out laughing at once. Jesse and Jaden were holding onto each other for support, Alexis just sighed in annoyance as everyone kept laughing.

"I swear…" she whispered.

"Th-Th-That's not funny!" Angelica shouted in embarrassment, her face still bright red, "Y-You don't just say that so casually!"

"Y-Yeah, you idiot!" Aster yelled, "We just got together! And you're here talking about _that_?!"

"What?! I didn't mean to sound _rude_! Lexi! Back me up here!" Atticus turned to his little sister, who shook her head.

"You're just being perverted, and creepy. There's nothing I could do for you." She replied, and backed away.

Jim then walked up to Alexis, "How do you live with this guy?" He whispered in her ear, and she shrugged in response.

"Beats me."

Angelica was still embarrassed after the comment. Of course, she knew the type of person Atticus is, but what threw her off was when he said _that_. How the hell does someone just bring that up?! 'Some things just can't be explained…' she thought.

* * *

*Later*

"You can do _what_?!"

"No way!"

"That's so cool!"

"How?!"

They were all sitting in the overly large room that Chazz had, and Angelica had just told them about her bracelet. The power it gave her over Earth, Fire, Water, Air, and Light. Normally, if people heard this, they'd laugh it off and think that it's totally unbelievable. But considering what the group had seen the past three years, they'd believe anything.

"Can you show us?!" Jaden asked eagerly, Jesse nodded.

"Yeah! It must be super cool!"

"Can you?" Syrus chimed in.

Angelica giggled at everyone's enthusiasm. She nodded, "Alright! Follow me!"

They all got up and followed Angelica outside, the wind was blowing nicely, and the sun was still shining. She took a deep breath, enjoying the cool wind brush against her face. Aster was behind her, admiring how the girl's hair flowed beautifully in the wind.

"First one…" Angelica turned around, grinning, "How about…" she looked at her bracelet, "Hmm….Air!"

She raised her hand, as the white gem began to glow brightly. The wind changed course, as it swirled around her like a tornado. Then, it lifted her up in the air, as she then pointed towards a pile of leaves that were scattered nearby. Wind picked up the leaves, as it went in a circular motion, following the pace of her moving finger. It went it many patterns, and even passed by the people at the bottom.

"Awesome!" Jaden exclaimed.

||I've never seen someone have the ability to do this.|| Yubel appeared beside him, ||Angelica really is something.||

Angelica then pulled a card out from her pocket, and the white gem glowed even brighter than before, she closed her eyes and lifted the card above her head, "Let the flow of wind guide you! As air itself parts ways in your appearance! Aéras, the Wind Goddess!"

A bright white beam shot out of the gem, as well as from Angelica's chest, as another tornado formed. Then, wings were shown through the storm of wind, as the tornado slowly disappeared.

Everyone below was in awe, as the goddess showed much maturity and wisdom in those shining grey eyes, and the wings that flapped against the air surrounding it. The gem in the middle of her wand was similar to the one on Angelica's bracelet, which showed their connection. The goddess looked down at everyone below, then at her original. Angelica nodded, and so did Aéras.

She flew around the group in circles, until they were lifted off the ground, and she led them towards the girl still in the air.

"We're flying?!" Bastion exclaimed.

"W-Woah!" Syrus looked down, a bit freaked out.

"Now _this_ is amazing! Ain't it Sherley?" Jim looked at his pet crocodile, who growled in response.

"Can't say I've ever done this before." Axel said, "But this is pretty interesting to say the least!"

"Never been on a plane…" Hassleberry looked down, "But this is much better than that!"

"There he goes…" Alexis muttered as her brother was dancing in mid air.

Jaden laughed, "I haven't felt this in _forever_! This is so cool!"

Jesse glanced at the energetic brunette and smiled, "Couldn't agree more!"

Aster floated towards Angelica, and grabbed her hand, trying to regain balance. The girl chuckled, "Don't worry, you'll get used to it."

"I hope so…" Aster muttered.

Angelica looked at her bracelet again, and smiled, "Now then…let me show you Earth next!"

The green gem shone bright this time, as the ground shook slightly. Suddenly, a large rock pillar appeared out of the ground, followed by another one. She then brought her two hands, and clasped them together, making the pillars crumble. Vines began to come out as well, making tangles and patterns.

Just like before, she pulled another card out, and the green gem grew brighter in response, she closed her eyes, "Flowers bloom in your wake, the ground rumbles in your command, let matter know your presence! Gisa, the Earth Goddess!"

With the chant, came a large boulder, and a green beam of light cracked through the stone, and passed through Angelica. The whole rock broke down, and showed Gisa. She had kind green eyes and a band around her head made of leaves and some flowers. A bow was on her back, while in her hand was a wand with the green gem as well. She smiled warmly at everyone, and raised her hand. Flowers began to grow, blooming with many different colors, and as they grew, Aéras pushed her hand forward, making a large gust of wind blow the petals off, and making them scatter everywhere.

"So beautiful…" Alexis breathed, watching the flower petals float down.

"And _romantic_ ~" Atticus added with a smirk, which made the girl roll her eyes.

Jesse found himself looking at how the petals reflected into Jaden's chocolate brown eyes, how they mirrored the gentle float of each petal that passed, he mentally kicked himself and looked away though, afraid the brunette would have caught him, 'Dammit! Get a hold of yourself!'

Angelica hugged Aster's arm and sighed in content, this brought a smile to the boy's face. She then brought two more cards.

"I'm pretty sure everyone has already met these two, right?" She announced. Everyone thought for a moment, before smiling and nodding.

"Alright!" Angelica raised the two cards, "Fotiá and Neró! Come out!"

At the same time, the red and blue gems lightened up, causing two beams to come out of Angelica. She had gotten used to the feeling, so it wasn't painful anymore.

Swirls of fire roared as Fotiá came into view, with that recognizable stern face. Also, a large hurricane of water splashed away when Neró showed her mermaid tail and that childish smile. She was extra excited at the sight of the group of teens. She waved frantically, to which everyone waved back. Chazz gulped when Fotiá shot him a glare that meant, "I don't like you one bit."

"Looks like she still has a thing against you." Angelica giggled as she saw the look on the black haired boy's face.

"I'd be surprised if she didn't." Aster added.

"And what the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?!" Chazz snapped back. The other boy shrugged in response.

"Go figure it out."

Chazz growled under his breath, wishing he could just knock him out. Of course, Fotiá already knew this, so she brought out her lava blade and pointed it towards him as a warning. Luckily, the duelist took the hint and slowly backed away.

"Okay guys, calm down!" Angelica said, "Fotiá? Neró? Why not show our friends some tricks?"

The fire goddess smirked, and the other goddess cheered. First, Fotiá made fireballs come out her hands, and shot them randomly somewhere. At that time, Gisa has rock pillars come out right on time, so the fireballs hit them. Then, Fotiá closed her eyes, and made a certain motion with her hands. As she was doing this, blazes of were forming, and later, creating a large dragon. They all gasped as the dragon roared, flying around in circles, then disappearing into the ocean near the cliff. The red eyed goddess glanced at Neró, who nodded, knowing she was next. So the mermaid dove down into the water, and shot out with a large stream following her. She laughed as water splashed against the people nearby, having so much fun showing off. The water followed the movement of her hands, following the rhythm of her fluid swings. Finally, Neró flew a good distance above, with the stream trailing nearby, she grabbed all the water within her hands, compressing it, and letting it all out in a large spray, making it look and feel like rain. Because of this rain, and the sun still high in the sky, a beautiful rainbow formed, leaving everyone in astonishment.

Jesse smiled at the sight, and didn't notice Ruby Carbuncle appear on his shoulder, "Rubbiiii"

"Oh hey Rubi!" Jesse said, "Wanna see the rainbow?"

The small creature nodded, and sat down. Winged Kuriboh also came out in it's spirit form, "Kuri! Kuri!"

"You too, pal?" Jaden asked, and the spirit nodded eagerly, resting on the boy's shoulder.

Angelica looked at the duel monsters and giggled, but stopped when she heard something. It sounded like...another dragon. She looked at the rainbow, and smiled again, Jaden, Jesse, and Chazz also noticed something.

"Hey...isn't that…?" Jaden breathed

"Rainbow Dragon…" Jesse finished, and saw the card glowing, 'Of course it would be you.'

Aster went behind Angelica and wrapped his arms around her waist, "This is beautiful, Angelica."

The girl blushed and chuckled, "I do my best. I've never actually done this, or shown all of this to anyone."

"Really?" Aster sounded surprised, "Not even in any of your past lives?"

Angelica shook her head, "Never." She closed her eyes and rested against the boy holding her, "But it feels great. Especially…with you."

Aster blushed, and kissed her forehead, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

They watched as the last drops of rain poured down, and Neró let out another childish laugh, playfully bowing. It would be rude not to clap, so they did, while they were slowly being lifted down until they reached the ground. All the goddesses waved, as the group waved back, then the four looked at Aster, and smiled at him, before disappearing into the cards, and Angelica's soul.

"That was epic!" Jaden exclaimed, and everyone agreed.

"That was probably a one in a lifetime experience. It's not everyday people can do that." Axel stated.

"No kidding. We were in mid air for crying out loud!" Syrus added.

Jaden nodded, but then a thought came to his head, "Wait a second. I wonder—"

"Ahem!"

They all turned to the attention to someone who had just arrived. It was Dr. Crowler, though he didn't look too happy, "I let you off the hook these past few days in consideration of the new student and her…conditions…" he glanced at Angelica for a split second, "but that does not mean you should just disappear from class for any longer! I suggest you get to them this instant!"

"Okay Crowler." Alexis said.

"As for you Angelica…" he looked at the girl, "You shall have your classes with Jaden and his friends, they will direct you to your assigned room. Is there any problems or complaints that you have?"

"Of course not!" Angelica beamed, "I love it here! I have no problem with taking the classes you spoke of."

"That's good to hear." Crowler replied, "If you have anything you need to say, just come to me or Chancellor Sheppard. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Dr. Crowler." The girl replied.

With that, the teacher left. Jaden let out a sigh of relief, "Man…I thought we'd be totally busted."

"We still gotta go to class, Jaden." Alexis pointed out, and the brunette groaned.

"Dang it…" he muttered.

Syrus looked at Angelica, "How can you be so…polite?"

The girl blinked in confusion, "What do you mean _how_?"

"You really don't know how Crowler really is?" Chazz scoffed.

"I do." She responded, "I just want to be polite. Can't be acting like someone who couldn't care less."

"Guess you're right…"

Bastion walked ahead, "We should probably get going, before he comes back to scold us again. I don't want to end up missing class either."

"We're coming." Jaden groaned, and Angelica giggled. She then turned to Aster.

"I'll see you after…" she said tenderly, walking closer to him.

"Yeah…" the boy smiled, and ran his hand through the white silver-ish hair. They both leaned in, letting their lips touch again in another kiss. Atticus was gonna go on another teasing session, but Alexis pinched him, so luckily that wasn't going to happen. Nobody said anything to ruin the moment. Chazz scoffed and looked away, while the rest were just staring and smiling.

When the two broke apart, they looked around and blushed, "Uh…"

"Don't mention it." Jim said, "It's fine."

"Let's go already." Bastion said urgently. They all rolled their eyes and took off, with Angelica blowing a kiss towards Aster before leaving. The silver haired boy couldn't get rid of the smile on his face.

'I must be the luckiest guy in the world.'

* * *

*In class*

Angelica entered the class with the rest, where Dr. Crowler was waiting for them, "Well, it's nice of you to finally join us."

"Excuse our interruption." The girl replied politely, the teacher nodded.

"Just try not to let it happen again."

People were whispering to each other, most likely about Angelica. As they sat down, Jaden overheard a conversation.

"You know, there's a rumor going around that Angelica and Aster are paired up."

"What?! Why _her_?!"

"Who knows? She is really pretty…"

"Idiot! Aster should be _mine_!"

"Pipe down would you? There are a bunch of girls like you who would want Aster as their boyfriend."

"Does it look like I care? Aster is too cute to be with a weirdo like Angelica!"

"Apparently, someone saw them walking towards the Ra Yellow Dorm, and they were holding hands."

"Grrr…it's not fair!"

"Are you _jealous_?"

"I'm mad that Aster Phoenix didn't choose _me_!"

Jaden sighed. He almost forgot about all of the fan girls that the pro duelist has. It wouldn't be surprising if most of them became bitter and jealous. Same goes for Angelica's fans…

Which brings us to the conversation Angelica overheard from the people a few seat away.

"Angelica looks so cute! Not to mention _hot_!"

"Oh save your breath, she's already with Aster Phoenix. Didn't you know?"

"Ugh! Seriously?! She goes for the popular boy?!"

"She probably just wants fame. And she covers it up by looking all innocent."

"That pro duelist is such a show off! What does Angelica see in him?! She should have been with me!"

"Why? So you can pull her into bed?"

"Shut your mouth! I'm not a _player_!"

"Sure…"

Angelica groaned and put her hand against her forehead in annoyance. This made the teens stop talking. The girl was frustrated that people thought of her like _that_. She was being ridiculed because of who she loves, and the boys who wanted a chance with her were just being jealous, 'What was I supposed to expect? Aster is a pro duelist, and I'm thought of as hot, pretty, and cute. Jeez...this is not going to be easy.'

Alexis was sitting with her friends, Mindy and Jasmine, who were also gossiping.

"I can't believe that hot Aster Phoenix is with someone else!" Mindy complained, "Plus, that Angelica just came to the academy! We haven't even seen her duel!"

"Alexis! Don't you think it isn't fair?!" Jasmine faced the blonde.

"You both are blind." Alexis responded, "I think they're perfect for each other."

"Are you serious?!" The two snapped back.

"Look," Alexis slightly glared, "You two think Aster is _hot_. From the way I see it, Angelica doesn't squeal like a little girl every time he comes near. Aster isn't like other boys either, he doesn't think of her as a toy, or a living decoration to make him look good. They both _love_ each other, from bottom to top, and inside and out. There's nothing to it. So I would appreciate it if you would both stop complaining like five year olds and get over your crushes."

Jasmine and Mindy stood silent for a moment, before growling a little.

"And what about you?!" Mindy said, "What about Jaden? Shouldn't you get over your crush on _him_?!"

The blonde clenched her fists, "Jaden has nothing to do with this." She looked away.

"Whatever." Jasmine glanced in another direction.

Angelica knew what happened, she can easily probe into Alexis's mind to figure out what was happening. She sighed, 'This is not going to be easy…'

"Alright! Alright! Settle down!" Crowler announced, "Don't know what you students are babbling about this time, but pay attention!"

There _were_ at least few people who weren't crushing on the two, that actually thought of them as a cute couple. So they ignored their friend's complaints and whines most of the time, and tried to tell them why they were a perfect match. But, there wasn't any chance that the jealousy would die down so quickly.

Now, the girls who were mad about Aster being with someone else did want something to happen, they all just waited. But, there were a group of three girls who have had a crush on him for the longest time. The leader, named Khartai(car • ti), who had magenta hair with red tips, and was in the Obelisk Blue rank, had run past Aster when they were both kids, wanting to talk to him ever since, but never got the chance because of his ever growing popularity as a duelist. That's the reason why she joined Duel Academy, to be a better duelist, to join the pro leagues, and to meet Aster Phoenix face to face. But now that Angelica has been paired up with him, her hatred grew.

"Damn that Angelica…" she sneered, "I'll get her…"

The girls were secretly planning something, raising their hatred towards Angelica, for being pretty, for attracting Aster, and for _claiming_ him. Unknowingly, their dark emotions were attracting someone else…

||Oh? What's this? Jealousy and rage for Angelica? I can't have that. But then again…||

She laughed.

||If they want Aster so badly, I can help them with that…let's just hope my lighter half won't take this _too_ personally…||

* * *

/ _Pacify her._ /

/ _She's getting on my nerves._ /

/ _You don't love her._ /

/ _Stop lying with those words_./

* * *

*Author's Note*

I am officially a year older! Yay!

My birthday was on the 18th, I was planning on posting this chapter on that day, but I got caught up in a lot of stuff. So yeah...my bad…

Not done with the mask thing, still need the materials.

Anyway! I love how this chapter came out, except for the fact that people don't really like the new pairing…how could you not?!

Aaand…Korísatanikí is back and wants to do something else, just great. She even found someone to help her with it. The new oc, Khartai. I imagine her as someone who says "Finders keepers!" So yeah, because she went all the way to duel academy and has had the longest crush on Aster, she thinks he should be her boyfriend…yeah I know some girl in my old elementary school who used to be like this, so I guess you can say I based it off of her.

We're at the 10 mark! Woohoo! Did you like the fluff and corny quote? Poor Jaden and Jesse are still confused.

Thank you presea221. You are amazing! 3

Byyyeeee!


	12. Chapter 11

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 11**

Korísatanikí: Things are getting interesting.

Khartai: *smirks* They sure are…

Angelica: Oh great, we got another evil one.

Aster: *whispers* What's up with this girl?

Me: Oh, Khartai? She's possessive over you.

Aster: Wow, thanks. I already have enough fans following me around, now I got to deal with an even crazier one.

Me: *sweat drops* Sorry.

Khartai: Aster! Come over here, please! I have a surprise for you!

Aster: No thank you…

Angelica: *sighs* You have got to be joking…

I don't own anything. Only Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, and Khartai. Everything else belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

The name Taylor doesn't connect to any real person, so if you're name happens to be this, the character mentioned with this name has nothing to do with you. It's just a name I chose for him! It is not meant to be offensive to anyone.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

Begin the chapter!

* * *

/ _Tired blue boy walks my way._ /

/ _Holding a girl's hand._ /

/ _That basic bitch leaves finally._ /

/ _Now I can take her man._ /

— "Pacify Her" by Melanie Martinez

* * *

*End of class*

The gang was walking through the hallways of the academy, glad to be out the classroom.

"Finally got that over with!" Jaden stretched his arms out. Angelica shook her head.

"And for once, you didn't sleep the entire time." She giggled when the boy gave a pout.

"That's because I couldn't sleep, I already had energy from before." Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Right…"

Jaden's face turned serious, "I also overheard a lot of people talking about Aster, and you." He looked at Angelica, "Not too many people are happy about your relationship."

"I knew they wouldn't be." Angelica sighed, "Considering how popular Aster is with the girls, _and_ the boys who are attracted to me at this academy, it's not surprising. Although, it is upsetting."

Alexis groaned, "Even Mindy and Jasmine are bitter about it. Remember how they practically thought of Aster as a god or something?"

Syrus cringed, "That's bad…"

Jesse glanced at Angelica sympathetically, "It ain't gonna be easy shoving them off."

The girl shook her head, "Nope. But I'll just have to manage."

"On a lighter note…" Jim joined in, "What're we gonna do when we get back?"

"How about some more duels?" Jaden smiled as his eyes lit up in excitement.

Angelica grinned, "Challenge accepted. I plan on beating you this time too!"

"No way!"

"Then you better get your game on!"

"That's my line!"

As they were chatting and making remarks about the duel, they hadn't noticed someone leaning against the wall, with her crossed arms and bitter expression. She was impatiently tapping her fingers on her arm, as she finally saw the person she was looking for.

"You're Angelica Rose, right?"

Everyone stopped. Angelica tilted her head in confusion, "That's me. Who are you?"

"The name's Khartai." The magenta haired girl muttered, trying not to let her hatred be known, 'So the boys weren't lying, she _does_ sound like an angel. Disgusting.'

"Is there something you need?" The other girl said, feeling skeptical about how Khartai was acting. But she smirked.

"Actually…there is something I need to let you know about…" she slowly walked up to Angelica. Her smirk quickly turning into a frown, as she glared straight the younger one. She then leaned closer to Angelica's face.

"I know about your relationship with Aster Phoenix. I wanna make something very clear…" she grabbed Angelica's arm and squeezed it, making the other yelp in surprise and flinch in pain, "Aster is _mine_. I have been doing everything I can to be with him, and I'm not going to let a _nobody_ like you ruin it. So if you don't get away from him, I'll make you wish you never came to this academy." She whispered in her ear, gripping onto her arm harder. Angelica made a small noise, showing that it hurt.

"Hey! Back off!" Jesse demanded, grabbing Khartai's wrist.

"What do you think you're doing?" Jaden grabbed her arm.

Khartai glared at the two boys, before letting go of Angelica, and backing away, "You better go find yourself someone new…because he is _mine_ , not yours. Got that?" She ran in the other direction, vanishing from their sight.

Chazz was utterly confused, "What the hell was that all about…?"

Syrus shook his head, "No idea…"

"That girl was seriously upset." Axel stated, "Likely about Aster and Angelica."

"Some girls would do anything to get the one they love, that's just how it works sometimes…" Atticus sighed.

Jaden glanced at Angelica, who was looking at her arm, "Are you okay?"

"That must've hurt…" Jesse said, "Especially because of…you know…"

"I'm fine…" Angelica looked up at the concerned faces, "Khartai…she's definitely not happy about me…"

"I have noticed her doing some things…" Alexis thought for a second, "Ever since Aster came to Duel Academy, she's been talking non-stop about how one day, she would join the pro leagues and duel him, saying it would be out of thanks, and _love_." She winced at the last part, "She would even stare at him for long periods of time when he was around."

"Is she crazy or somethin'?" Jesse remarked.

"I know why." Everyone faced Angelica.

"How?" Jaden asked, the girl raised her arm slightly.

"When she made contact with me, I was able to not only go into her mind and heart, but her past as well. From what I saw, a long time ago, she was going through the streets alone, because of her disgust for her parents, for never giving her enough attention, it was like they barely acknowledged her existence. She was only ten at the time, so people would glance at her in confusion and walk past. It came to the point where everyone was judging her, saying she was a poor beggar. She ran away from the people, and came to a park, where she saw him, Aster, with The D. But she was so distracted that she slipped and fell. Aster was really nice, so he went up and lend her a hand. She stared as he walked away, unable to move for five minutes straight."

"Ever since then, she's been after Aster. She's been wanting to have an actual conversation, or even start a relationship with him. But the problem was that the public wouldn't allow it. Neither would her parents. They thought Khartai would never have a chance with him, but that didn't stop her. So she spent most of her time dueling, improving her skills, and even joining this academy. Then, her hopes were high when she saw Aster come here, she was actually thinking of talking to him,

to see if he remembered her. But with everything going on at the time, she couldn't even get near him. Then…I came and…well…you probably know the rest…"

"But was that feeling towards Aster just some fangirl crush?" Chazz asked, Angelica shook her head.

"Khartai fell in love with because he was popular, of course, but also because of how helpful he was to her. Besides, she didn't have anyone to talk to, not at school, or at home. I think she's desperate for attention, for love, because that's something she barely got as a child. Now…her hatred towards me is almost unmeasurable. She believes that Aster should be _hers_ , but that's because her childhood made her corrupted, and now she believes that he is _her_ possession, and no one else's."

"That's a bit creepy…" Syrus said.

"It doesn't change the fact that she'd do anything for him…" the girl continued, "With how determined she is, it's pretty hard to make her quit."

"What are you and Aster going to do?" Alexis asked, Angelica shrugged.

"I don't really know…but we'll see just how far she'd go." Everyone nodded and kept walking to the red dorms.

Unfortunately, a certain demon was listening to their conversation.

||Khartai would do _anything_ , you say? Well, this makes things a lot simpler. This is Plan A, let's see how it turns out.||

She sighed.

||But for it to work…I need Fos to cooperate…||

* * *

*At the Slifer Red Dorms*

Aster was called by Angelica that classes were over, and that they would be back in the red dorms. So he came, and smiled when he found his bright little angel, "Hey, Angelica."

The girl stood up and smiled back, "Hey, Aster."

She walked up and gave a quick kiss on the lips before leading him to sit next to her, "Aster, something happened when we were walking out of class."

The silvered hair boy blinked in confusion, and looked around, "What?"

Jesse sighed, "We ran into some girl from the Obelisk Blue. And she wasn't very happy to see Angelica."

"Her name is Khartai," Alexis continued, "She was angry at Angelica, for being your girlfriend and all that."

"No surprise there." Aster interrupted.

"What _is_ surprising…" Axel said, "Is that Khartai thinks you belong to _her_ , and her alone."

Aster scoffed, "Why the hell would she think that?"

Angelica looked at him, "Because of that time where she ran into you. It was when you two were only kids, but she still remembers it quite clearly. Do you remember seeing a girl fall, and you went to help her? She had magenta hair, a blue ponytail, a light purple shirt, and a white and pink skirt that reached up to her knees, does that sound familiar?"

The boy was silent for a few minutes, thinking about the details of Khartai, and then something struck him, "Wait…I think I remember. We were only about ten. She was running past me, and suddenly tripped, I helped her up, and went back home. But I do recall seeing her in some of my fan gatherings, though she'd always stay in the corner, just watching from the sidelines. I knew I recognized her, but I was too caught up in my career that overtime, I forgot. And now she's mad at _you_?"

Angelica sighed, "Yeah…she also threatened me…"

|"If you don't get away from him, I'll make you wish you never came to this academy."|

Aster was slowly boiling up with anger, "Who the hell does that brat think she is?"

"My thoughts exactly." Bastion said, "Now that you're caught up, we just have to figure out if she was bluffing or not."

"Most likely not…" Angelica replied, "I'm pretty sure Khartai was completely serious…"

"That makes things more complicated." Axel stated, "Then we have to find out what she would try to pull, and how to get rid of her."

"How about this…" Hassleberry pitched in, "We wait for the enemy to take action, and come at her full force, so that she retreats."

"Sounds good." Syrus agreed, "One problem…how are we supposed to see her coming? She can literally think up of anything."

"Khartai is a very competitive and ambitious girl…" Angelica pointed out, "She doesn't like giving up so easily, nor does she quit in her goals, and in this case, her goal is to push me aside and have Aster to herself." The girl growled a little at the last part.

"There is _no_ way I'm letting that happen." Aster said confidently, "Never in a million years would I fall for someone like _her_." He smiled at Angelica, "I love you for a reason, you know. Not just cause I think you're cute, but cause of what I see _inside_. Khartai barely grabs onto me, ever since our encounter, which wasn't even that big. She's _that_ desperate. You're nothing like her."

Angelica lightly blushed and smiled, "Thank you."

Jesse looked at the couple, 'That's what you call the perfect match…'

The girl then glanced around the room, "We'll see how badly she wants this, there's no telling what her and her group of _friends_ will do." She said the word "friends" in a sarcastic tone.

Everyone nodded in agreement. But then, when Angelica looked out the window, to see the sun halfway down, something came to her mind, "Wait…" she whispered, softly enough so no one would hear her.

||Didn't you have an… _appointment_ with those group of boys?||

Angelica was slightly startled. She hadn't heard Korísatanikí ever since Aster stopped her from ending her life. Why was she surfacing now? What did she want?

"Angelica…?" Aster noticed the surprised expression on the girl's face, but she didn't respond.

||I'm just reminding you, it's this night, is it not?||

Angelica shook her head and looked at Aster, "Can we go to my room?" She looked at Jaden and Jesse, "Is it alright if you guys come with us, too?"

The three boys were momentarily confused, but when they saw the serious look on her face, they nodded in return. Angelica grabbed Aster's hand, and faced the rest in the room, "Sorry about this, there's something I need to take care of, and I need their help, I hope that's alright."

They exchanged glances, before nodding understandingly. The girl smiled gratefully, "Thank you. We can do some stuff tomorrow, right?"

"Sure!" Atticus said, "Now you go do…whatever it is you need to do."

With that, the four went out the room, and were walking towards the Ra Yellow Dorms.

* * *

*On their way to the yellow dorms*

Aster faced Angelica, worried about what she pulled them out for, "Angelica? Why did you need us to go?"

The girl looked down, "I just remembered something."

The three stayed silent, waiting for her to go on, "Yesterday, those group of boys wanted to meet me at night, that day is today, and I need to get them out of our business."

They were all shocked, "But you can't just _go_!" Jaden exclaimed.

"..." Angelica thought for a moment, "Why not? What could _they_ possibly do?"

"You don't know!" Aster said, "What if something bad happens to you?"

The girl smiled, "I'll be fine, Aster. If anything _were_ to happen, I'd just warn you, I'd send a sign. That's why I need you three to be in my room, just in case."

The rest were quiet for a few moments, so she spoke again, "Just trust me."

Jaden and Jesse exchanged glances, before nodding understandingly. Aster was still not convinced, and he told himself there was no way he was going to let her go alone, "I'm still going with you, but if It'll make anything better, I'll just stay hidden. If they were to do anything to you, I'll make them regret the day they ever came close to you."

Angelica sighed but gave a grateful smile, "Well I can't say no. Okay, that's gonna be the plan then."

They all nodded again, and began walking towards Angelica's room.

* * *

*Angelica's Room*

Angelica groaned slightly in annoyance as she plopped herself on the bed. Why did some boys have to be so perverted? And of all people, why _her_? 'Guess I shouldn't be questioning it anymore. It's supposedly _normal_ for girls like me. But I at _least_ want a good reason.'

Aster noticed the girl's distress, and sat on the bed with her. She wasted no time and sat on his lap, resting her head on Aster's chest. But then he saw the other's arm slightly shaking.

"What's wrong?" He asked softly.

Angelica sighed, "When Khartai was threatening me, she grabbed my arm surprisingly hard, and it still aches."

'Damn that Khartai…' Aster mentally cursed. He then grabbed Angelica's sleeve, "Can I see…?"

There was a pause, then the girl nodded slowly. So Aster carefully rolled up her sleeves, not wanting to agitate the injured arm. His breath hitched as he saw the many cuts on her wrist, just as Korísatanikí had shown them the other day, "Angelica…" he whispered, as he delicately ran his fingers past the wounds.

"I'll…I'll go get bandages…" Jaden got up from his seat, and left the room, Jesse following soon after, making sure to close the door.

"It was really bad…" Angelica said, "I'm just realizing that now…"

Aster looked at the other arm, and gently rolled up her other sleeve, showing almost a mirror of scars.

"Why…?" Aster breathed, although he already knew the answer to that, which was why Angelica had stayed silent.

The boy's eyes followed up her arms, to the scarf around her neck, 'Why is that there…?' He slowly reached out his hand.

"A-Aster? W-What are you…?" Angelica's voice trailed off when the other started untying her scarf with care. Her breathing began to slow down, almost to a complete stop, as she let him finish.

Aster didn't exactly know what he would've saw, but again, it was very surprising.

On Angelica's neck, there was a big scar that stretched all the way around. It was rigged, but clean at the same time. It looked edged into her skin, as if it was a tattoo. There was a little depth into the cut, but when Aster touched it, nothing really happened, it didn't hurt whatsoever. How did it get there?

"I knew this scarf wasn't just for decoration." Aster said almost jokingly, "How did you get this?"

Angelica took a deep breath, "In one of my past lives, I don't remember which one, I was executed. Of course, nothing except that special knife was able to kill me, but they were able to use the same dark magic and material to create a large blade that would send immortals to death. So they used it on me, and judging by how the cut is around my neck, I'm pretty sure you can guess what they did…"

Aster was quite for a moment, then he almost gagged, "Jesus…that's cruel…"

"I know."

"So…it doesn't hurt? It's just kinda like a birthmark…right?" Aster asked slightly out of curiosity. The other nodded, while he kept running his fingers along the mark. It was pretty disturbing, no doubt, but he _could_ get used to it after a while.

The boy leaned in and pressed a light kiss on Angelica's neck, which kinda startled her, but she didn't complain. He then began to plant more kisses along it, reaching up to her jawline, and finally claiming her lips. He wrapped his arms around the girl's waist, while she tangled her fingers in his silver hair. They parted when someone softly knocked on the door.

"Is it alright for us to come in…?"

Aster rolled his eyes, as they pulled away, "Yeah, come in."

Jaden and Jesse came through the door, with one of them holding a small bag. Angelica looked inside the bag, and found some medical supplies. She looked back at the boys, understanding why they brought it. So she put out her arms, showing the wounds on her wrist. Jesse pulled out a napkin, put some alcohol on it, and carefully rubbed it on the scars. The girl winced, biting her lip so she wouldn't make any sound.

"Sorry…" Jesse said, noticing her discomfort.

"No, it's fine…"

Aster then grabbed the bandages, wrapping it around the cuts, making sure to cover everything. While they were still helping, Jaden then noticed Angelica wasn't wearing her scarf, which showed him the large mark around her neck. What in the world is that?

"Um…Angelica…?" Jaden hesitantly asked, "What…happened to your neck?"

The girl froze for a second, then sighed, "In my past life…people found out that I'm an immortal, and…well…long story short it was off with my head…"

They winced in disgust.

"Ouch…" Jesse muttered.

"That's cruel…" the brunette said. Aster nodded.

"Exactly what I thought."

"Done." Jesse smiled as Angelica looked at her bandages arms.

"Thank you."

"Don't sweat it. We're always here to help."

"Just…" Aster added, "Promise you won't…do that again, okay?"

Angelica smiled, "I promise."

The room was filled with orange and yellow rays, as the sunset color filled the sky. The sun was slowly hiding in the horizon, as the sky grew darker and darker with each passing minute. The four were chatting about nothing in particular, just anything that came to mind, or any questions they had for Angelica. Suddenly, the girl stood up and looked out the window. Stars were becoming visible in the night. It was pretty, but it always brought bad memories to her. Aster noticed and stood beside her, putting an arm around her waist, and pulling her closer. They stood there staring at the starry night for a few moments, while the other two boys stayed seated, a bit hesitant to say something. Angelica then looked straight at Aster…

"I think I should go now…"

They kept quiet, before the silver haired boy nodded, "I'll be nearby, just in case."

Jaden smiled, "And we'll be here in case of an emergency, right?"

"Exactly."

As the couple were at the door, they turned back towards the others again.

Jesse gave a smile, "Careful, alright?"

"You better come back." Jaden added.

They both nodded, and left the room, on their way to the abandon dorms, where the boys would most likely be waiting.

* * *

*The Abandon Dorm*

Aster has never really wanted to visit the abandoned dorms, since he had no interest in it, or in any of the rumors that surrounded it. But, now that he was looking at it, he could see why no one was allowed to come here. According to Alexis, her brother Atticus had disappeared a long time ago because of dark magic, but they soon found him, although at first he was a being of darkness(aka Nightshroud), Jaden dueled him, and he was free from the control. It would seem unbelievable, but Aster was someone who believed in destiny and fate, along with always believing in Sartorius's ability to predict the future and whatnot. So it wasn't _too_ ridiculous. On the other hand, Angelica just stared at it like if it was any ordinary house, she wasn't frightened, startled, not even the slightest bit of doubt was in her eye. Why? Well, she's seen _much_ worse than this. With that in mind, why would some random perverted _boys_ invite her to a place like _this_? How come they didn't even get caught? You'd think the academy would have more security, considering past events that have took place because of this dorm, but no.

Angelica then noticed a few familiar figures on the side of the building, obviously waiting for something, or someone.

"Aster, I think you should hide somewhere near." She faced the boy, "If they find out you came with me, they won't be happy."

Aster reluctantly agreed, "Okay, I'll go behind that tree," he pointed to a tree in the middle of a few bushes, "and make sure they don't do anything. Please, be careful."

"I will."

They both gave each other a quick kiss before going separate ways. Aster his behind the bushes, slowly crouching and stepping forward till he reached the tree. He hid behind it, able to get a clear view of the group of boys. There were more though. Last time there were three, but Aster saw about five or six of them. The small one who didn't want to get involved wasn't there, he probably bailed out. Why did they need that many people?

All of them turned their heads one by one, and smirked when they saw Angelica. In their eyes, they saw a innocent, helpless girl who has no idea what's coming, and would never forget this night, for it would traumatize her for life. The leader of the group,- the same boy would threatened Angelica and planned the whole thing -clapped his hands and laughed.

"Would you look at that? She actually came! Looks like you're not just hot stuff after all!"

The others laughed as well. Now Angelica had more of a reason to be angry.

"Great. I'm here. What do you want? Because I've got better things to do than watch you treat me like a queen."

The older boy scoffed, "You better watch that tongue. Keep your mouth shut unless I tell you to open it again~"

"You really say that to _all_ the girls?" Angelica retorted, "No wonder you don't have a girlfriend, unless those followers of yours are supposed to be your sex buddies."

Aster was slightly shocked, 'Woah. Didn't know she can come up with something like that.'

"Why you…" the other boy growled, "You'll regret ever saying that…" he turned to his friends, "Get her! Now!"

Angelica stood there as two boys ran up and grabbed her arms, holding her in place. Aster quickly jumped out of hiding, trying to tackle them, but he was quickly caught by three boys who pinned him to the ground. Where the hell did they come from?

"You bastards! Let us go!" He squirmed around, but their grip was too strong.

"Hey look. It's the prince who's come to save his little princess." The older boy laughed, "Hate to break it to you, but she's _mine_ now~"

Aster cursed under his breath, as he glanced at Angelica, 'I screwed up. I have to get out of this mess now!' He attempted to break free, but ended up failing again.

The girl looked at the boy in front of her, "I believe your name is Taylor, right?" She sounded calm, as if there was nothing wrong with the situation, it just made the leader angrier.

He slapped her, "I told you to keep your mouth shut!"

"Angelica!" Aster yelled, he looked at Taylor, "Damn you! Leave her alone!"

"Why would I do that?" Taylor said teasingly, caressing Angelica's cheek, "I'll never be able to find a girl like this again. She's probably one in a million, and now she belongs to _me_ ~"

Angelica stared at Taylor, not even showing the slightest bit of fear. Why wouldn't she be scared? What was wrong with her? Doesn't she know the problem she's in? As these question were running through Taylor's mind, he quickly came back to what he's been wanting to do.

"This isn't the right scenery…" he said, "How about I take you two somewhere more…fitting~?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Aster sneered.

"I just thought of something…" Taylor smirked, "Aster, I can't do any _serious_ damage to you, since that would look bad in front of the cameras. _But_ , I will give you a perfect view of your beloved angel being _taken._ Won't that be _fun_ ~?"

"You're sick."

"I'm just making the most out of what I've got~!" Taylor grabbed Angelica's chin, making her face him, "And I must have hit the jackpot, because this girl right here is what I need~"

Aster wanted to knock the living daylights out of this guy, and he would've, if it weren't for the few boys that had slammed him to the ground. But it was still clear that he was unbelievably angry.

'Don't worry, love.'

Aster heard someone speaking in his mind. It sounded like…Angelica.

'I'll take care of this, or rather…someone else will.'

This made the boy confused. Who was she talking about?

'I know I shouldn't do this, but frankly, I don't care what happens to these prostitutes anymore. And I know this is probably going to affect me, but I…want them to see _her_. So they can get what they deserve. I also know you won't be happy to see her, but this is what I chose. I love you, Aster.'

With that, she left his mind. Aster was in horror. It couldn't be…it couldn't be _her_.

Why would she call Korísatanikí?

She said she didn't care anymore what happened to the boys. Her voice seemed a little empty too. What was going on?

Aster faced Angelica, who gave him a sort of sad smile, knowing that the boy didn't approve. Of course he didn't.

"You know what? I'm feeling a little generous today!" Taylor looked at all his friends, "How about I let all of you get a taste of her~?"

They all cheered and laughed, which made Aster even more angry and disgusted. He looked at the girl, wanting to help, wanting to be there for her. That's what he _promised_. That's what he—

"Hahaha…how cute…"

Everyone stopped.

"You guys think I'm actually _scared_ …?"

They faced Angelica. She was smirking.

"You thought I'd let you do whatever you want with me?"

Taylor scoffed, "What can you do, huh?" He then went to slap her again, but his hand stopped mid air, before it was able to even _touch_ her, "W-What the hell?! I-Is this a trick?!"

Angelica glared straight into his eyes, still grinning.

"I'm feeling a bit generous too…so I'll let all of you get a taste of _her_ power…doesn't _that_ sound pleasant?"

"W-Who?! Stop being stupid!" One of the boys in back yelled. Angelica snickered.

"You wanna see her?"

Some of the boys backed away, while the others holding Aster loosened their grip, but the silver haired boy stood still.

Angelica closed her eye, "Korísatanikí, it's your time to shine."

There was a long pause, before a distorted laugh was heard. An all too familiar demonic voice came out of the girl's mouth, as the ground began to slightly shake. Wind picked up, and blew into her hair, revealing her left eye, as she opened both. They were those demon eyes again.

"It's nice to meet you. Are you ready to have _fun_?"

* * *

/ _And all the kids cry out, "Please stop! You're scaring me!"_ /

/ _I can't help, this awful energy!_ /

/ _God damn right! You should be scared of me!_ /

/ _Who is in control?_ /

— "Control" by Halsey

* * *

*Angelica's conscious*

||I'm quite surprised. You've never called me to actually _kill_ someone. All this time, it was because I just felt like it.||

"Yeah, I know."

||I don't want to forgive you. You chose Aster over everything else.||

"I love him, that's why."

||...||

"I couldn't care less if those boys threw themselves off cliffs, or if they castrated each other. I just want them gone."

||Woah! Haha! Didn't see that coming! You know what? I change my mind, Fos. I was getting really bored in here.||

"They're all yours…Skotádi…"

|| _Also…_ as a token of appreciation…I'll let you have a front row seat in the action…so you can enjoy the show~||

* * *

*Angelica's Room*

||Jaden.||

Yubel materialized inside the room, which caught the boys off guard.

"Yubel? What's up?" Jaden asked.

||There's a dark energy growing, quickly. And it's powerful, not from this world, nor this dimension…I think…||

"Oh no…" Jesse said, getting up from his seat, "It must be that demon! They're at the abandon dorms, right?"

Jaden's eyes turned orange and teal for a split second, before he nodded, "Yeah. Let's go!"

* * *

*Back at the Abandon Dorms*

"H-Holy crap!" All the boys let go, as Taylor stumbled to the ground, "W-What the fuck is this?!"

One of the boys screamed, as he flung into a tree, knocking him unconscious. Korísatanikí laughed.

"Don't worry, I won't _kill_ you. That would look _horrible_ on Angelica's reputation, if the boys she met up with were the same ones found dead. I don't want people bashing her now." She paused, "Oh, and just as she said, having students die here would have the academy's reputation plummet as well."

Aster's eyes widened, 'Wait, Angelica is _watching_ this?'

"That's correct." Korísatanikí faced the boy on the floor, "I saved her the best seat, after all! I'm pretty sure she'll enjoy it."

"She's nothing like you!" He retorted, this just cause the demon to laugh again.

"Oh really? Then why did she specifically want _me_ to deal with these idiots? She knows all too well what I can do, that's the reason why she thought I was fit for the job!"

"Speaking of which…" she faced Taylor, and grinned widely, "I love that expression on a mortal's face. It's hilarious!" She cackled, as dark ropes came out of the ground, grabbing on of the other boy's arms and legs, then lifting him in the air, till the two were at eye level, "You wanna know how I think of disgusting humans like you? I think of them as annoying cockroaches, only meant to be killed and stepped on, nothing more!" The ropes slammed the boy on the ground, then letting him go. But because of the impact, he was also knocked out, on the brink of death.

Some of the boys tried running, but had no luck, as they were swiftly caught in more ropes. But this time, Korísatanikí did something different, she made the ropes so they'd slowly burn their skin. As they cried out in pain, she just laughed, appreciating the beautiful sounds.

"Put them down!" Aster yelled, "Sure they're jerks, but they don't deserve to have _this_."

"Ah! P-Please!" One of them yelled, "We'll stop! We'll turn ourselves in! We'll never bother you again! Just please! Let us—AH!" The ropes tightened around them, making the pain even more unbearable.

"You really think I'm going to listen to your pathetic whining?" Korísatanikí smirked, "I'm afraid not. This is your fault! You brought this upon yourselves! Now you can suffer!" The boys all screamed again, getting burnt marks around their body. Finally, they were put down, but were unconscious because of the pressure. Taylor watched in horror as the demon floated towards him. He backed up against the wall, and closed his eyes.

Korísatanikí leaned closer to his face, examining him. Taylor turned his head the other way, only to face her again when she grabbed his chin. The demon smirked.

"What do you think, Fos? Is it alright if I turn him into one?"

Aster got up, 'Into one? One what?' he walked towards her, but bumped into an invisible wall, he pounded his fists against it, "Hey! What are you doing?! Let me through!"

"Calm down, _agóri egó_." She grinned at the nickname she came up with, "I just want to do something real quick, then I'll be on my way…" she paused, as if someone was saying something to her, and she kept her grin, "Nice. Oh and don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't do _that_ to you or anything."

She turned towards Taylor again, and slowly placed a hand on his forehead, then she closed her eyes, and took a deep breath, "Taylor Carver, ever since being a child, you've been exposed to things a kid should never see. Your mother was a stripper, as well as a prostitute, while your father was almost always drunk, and hanging out at multiple strip clubs and bars. They taught you many things, like how to do it _right_. They were never considerate, so they didn't care what they did in front of you, and because of that, you've hated them, but you've also began to crave what they did, and your sexual desires grew. But you never did anything stupid, until your baby sister was killed, because she wasn't fit to be _part of the family_. That made your hatred grow, but you've wanted to show your parents that you can be like them, or even _better_."

"That's why you went after Angelica, isn't it?" Korísatanikí opened her eyes, to be met with wide and terrified ones. The boy looked away, and slowly nodded, "Tell me, have you ever thought about paying your parents another visit? I'm sure they'd be _delighted_ to see you again~"

Taylor finally got the courage to face the demon again, "W-What do you mean by that…?

She snickered, "Well…here's the deal, I want you to become one of _us_ ," she pointed at herself, "a being of _Hell_. But I can't simply turn _anyone_ into one, that person has to have enough darkness in their heart, negative emotions, traumatic feelings, you name it. You have _all_ of that, and now, if you become a demon, you can kill, play, or hurt _any_ mortal. You won't be like anyone else anymore. Nothing else can kill you, other than a special knife. But that's long gone, I don't think anyone would be able to get it anyway, it's one of a kind."

"A…demon…?" Taylor breathed, and Aster couldn't believe him. Was he actually considering it?

"I'm giving you the opportunity of a lifetime." Korísatanikí stood up, "You'll never be given this chance again."

Taylor looked down, "I…"

"Aster!"

Said boy turned around, "Jaden! Jesse!"

The two were running towards him, but stopped when they saw what they feared it would be, "Korísatanikí…" they were about to run in, but Aster stopped them.

"Don't bother. She put an invisible wall, I can't break through."

Jaden looked at Yubel, but Korísatanikí already knew what he was thinking.

"Don't even try that either. Yubel can't break the wall, nor can any of your duel monster friends. Too bad." She smirked. Jaden and Jesse glared at her, before turning their attention to Aster.

"How the heck did this happen again?" Jesse asked. Aster explained the whole situation, and the two boys looked at Taylor.

"This guy…" Jaden muttered, then his eyes widened, "Wait…does he really want to be a demon?!"

"That's what I'm waiting to hear~" Korísatanikí answered, facing the boy sitting on the floor again, "So? Do you want to become one of us? Do you want to join us, and do whatever you please in this cruel and pathetic world?"

She extended a hand, waiting for the boy to grab it. He glanced at the hand, then at the others on the other side of the wall.

"Don't do it!" Jaden yelled, "Why would you want to become a hideous demon from Hell?! There's nothing good about it!"

Jesse joined in, "That monster is messing with your head! Don't listen to her!"

Taylor then looked at Aster, who stared. He then smirked, "If this means I'll be able to get back at my perverted parents, then so be it." He grabbed the demon's hand, as she pulled him up from the ground.

"You idiot!" Aster exclaimed, "Don't you realized what you've agreed to?!"

"Oh I'm pretty sure he does, right?" Korísatanikí snickered, and Taylor nodded, "Good. Now let the ritual begin!"

She made a shard of a black and red looking rock appear in her hand, as she began chanting in a different language.

" **Uoy emusnoc yeht sa, efil ot luos ruoy ni snoitome tsekrad eht gnirb. Dertah eb ereht tel, doolb eb ereht tel…"**

A mark appeared on the floor, it was a satanic star, which surrounded Taylor. It glowed a bright blood red, as the ground began to shake again.

" **...em ekil emoceb ylwols uoy sa, sniev ruoy hguorht gnisruoc ti evah llahs uoy. Doolb nomed ym uoy evig llahs i…"**

She carefully cut her arm, ignoring the bandages, and spilling blood on the symbol, which made walls transparent red walls of energy appear around the borders. She then went to Taylor, and stabbed him right in the heart, but he didn't die. Instead, he cried out as his chest began to glow. It was happening. He was transforming. The black gem on the necklace that was around the demon's neck exerted more dark energy, as it reacted with the ritual. Taylor kept screaming in pain, as things slowly started to grow out of him, spilling even more blood. Jaden didn't want to look anymore, so went behind Jesse and closed his eyes. The others ended up looking away as well.

" **Dlrowrednu eht fo nomed a sa nrober eB !nrober eB. Retsam wen ruoy, dog wen ruoy eb llahs nataS dna. Emoh wen ruoy si taht rof, lleH fo shtped eht ni llewd uoy sa dna, raef ffo deef uoy sa, dertah fo deef uoy sa. Rewop otni nrut llahs, niap ruoy lla, worros ruoy lla!"**

One by one, he was growing the parts of a demon. His tail, his horns, his wings, and finally his eyes. On his neck, was a satanic star marked onto the skin, and on his wrist was a bracelet, but it had a black gem in the middle, similar to the one on the necklace. He screamed one last time, before he was consumed by a thick black fog. The symbol disappeared, and miraculously, so did the blood. But in the middle, Taylor stood there, looking exhausted. He was panting, but through each breath, he was grinning, and he let out a laugh, "This feels _great_!"

As the others caught a glimpse of his left eye, they saw that it was a demonic eye, just like the one Angelica has. This was no longer the same Taylor, he had completely changed.

"Dammit…you're such an idiot…" Aster growled.

||His hatred, rage, and lust got the better of him.|| Yubel remarked, ||And now, they've turned him into this… _thing_.||

"This is the first time in almost ten thousand years since I've transformed someone…let alone a human…" Korísatanikí smirked, "But it turned out better than I expected…I actually thought he was going to die."

"You…" Jaden muttered.

Korísatanikí ignored the venom in his words and turned her attention back to Taylor, "Now then, I can't have anyone else finding out about your other side. So you must lay low, and try keeping that eye covered. Also, don't interact too much with anyone else, some people are capable of figuring out."

"Of course, _Igemonída_." Taylor bowed, and disappeared through a portal, shooting one more look at Aster before going.

The demon then grinned at the rest, "I believe I should be going now. But before I do, I need to warn you about someone else…Khartai."

"What about her?!" Aster demanded.

Korísatanikí laughed and continued, "If she is pushed to a certain point, she will end up risking _anything_ and _everything_ to be with you, agóri egó. So I suggest you better hurry and do something about it, before she _really_ goes _yandere_ on you~"

With that, she closed her eyes, letting her hair cover the left eye. Aster hesitantly walked towards her, not sure if it was safe to do so. But he was reassured when the girl opened her eye, which was back to it's normal color, though a little clouded and blank. It was Angelica, just not the cheerful one.

"Angelica!" Aster embraced her tightly. The girl was startled a little, but she hugged him back, not as tight.

"I know you didn't want that to happen…" she said, "but…I just…didn't care…"

"What do you mean?" The boy pulled away to look her in the eye, as he cupped her cheeks with his hands.

"I…didn't feel anything." She replied, "I didn't feel guilty, sorrow, pain, nothing. I was actually…happy…" her eye welled up with tears, "Aster…what's h-happening to me? Why am I turning to this?"

Aster removed one of his hands in order to grip onto one of the girl's hands, intertwining their fingers, but Angelica continued, this time a stray tear rolled down her cheek, "I…I-I'm turning into a monster! I'm turning into a sociopath! Why am I—"

She was cut off when Aster pressed his lips against hers. When they pulled apart, Aster hugged her again, "I've already told you, Angelica. You're not a monster. And you never will be! And just because of this, doesn't mean we think of you any less. You're still you."

Angelica inhaled a shaky breath, before nodding, wiping away the tear, and bringing back her smile, "If you say so…" she pulled away a bit in order to look into Aster's eyes, which were filled with love, passion, and…guilt?

"Aster? Is there something you feel bad about?" The girl asked. He looked a bit shocked, but then he sighed. There wasn't really anything he could hide from her.

"I wasn't able to get them off…" he began, looking down at the ground, "They pinned me to the ground, and I wasn't able to do anything when Taylor harassed you. I want to protect you. But how am I supposed to do that if I can't even…" his voice trailed off, and he felt a lump in his throat.

Angelica smiled, "It's not your fault, Aster. I really appreciate that you want to protect me, and I'm grateful for that. Even if there's something that you can't do, as least you tried, and that's all that matters to me. Even if you're unable to do anything… I still love you."

The boy perked his head up again, and smiled thankfully. They then leaned for another kiss, not minding where they were at the moment, because everytime they share these calm and passionate moments, the world disappears around them, and the only thing on their minds are each other.

As Jesse watched, he couldn't help but feel jealous. Those two were _made_ for one another, and they loved each other unconditionally. There were moments when the boy questioned his own sexuality before, but he became even more confused ever since he met Jaden, and seeing a lot more couples around wasn't helping either. His thinking was beginning to make his head hurt, but he didn't show it. He just smiled, because he was happy for Aster and Angelica. Jaden _did_ notice a few things, like how his best friend's gaze seemed a bit distant, and sad. But as he smiled, the brunette began to feel butterflies in his stomach again, so he quickly turned away, 'Not again!'

Yubel smirked, she was probably gonna have to tell a few things to her prince later, if he was even willing to listen. Just in time, the couple broke apart, slightly out of breath, but still happy. Jaden also smiled.

Angelica then faced the rest, "Let's go back, it's already a bit late."

Jesse nodded, stretching his arms, "I'm with yah. Today was tiring."

"When is a day _ever_ just relaxing?" Aster said.

Jaden chuckled, "Good point."

Angelica then found out what was going on between the two before, and she grinned, "Wow, you guys are clueless."

The two friends looked at her in confusion, "Eh?"

She giggled, "I'll let you two figure out."

"Figure out what?" Aster asked. The girl leaned in and whispered in his ear what she found out, this made Aster sigh and smirk, "Isn't that cute?"

"That's not fair!" Jaden whined, "Come on! Tell us!"

"Now isn't the right time~" Angelica winked, "Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough~"

"I hate when people do that…" Jesse muttered.

So they walked back to the dorms, with Jaden and Jesse still trying to make the other two spill it. But they kept their mouths shut, and wouldn't say a thing about it. Angelica mentally thanked Korísatanikí for today, as she let it go by. The demon was never good with feelings like these, since she was never meant to have them, but it still meant something.

Let's just hope she can understand better in the future.

* * *

*Author's Note*

Yay! It's up! And I'm free from projects for now! Hopefully I won't get another one…

The name Taylor Carver is just something I came up with, it has no relation to anyone in real life. But if you know anyone or if your name is Taylor, please don't be offended!

*sigh* there is the blood again. I mean, when one of the main people is half demon, you can't expect them to take a break. And there is also the problem with Khartai.

On another note, this is my longest chapter yet! With about 7k words(not including the beginning intro and this author's notes)! I've been trying to squeeze this in with all the other stuff I have to do, so I feel this as an accomplishment!

Now I feel bad for Jaden and Jesse.

Next chapter will have some more fluff, some maybe awkward or cute moments, and lots of Khartai and her plans.

A "yandere" is basically someone who is madly in love with someone, to the point where they'd go above and beyond to make them theirs. They can be extremely possessive, jealous, and mad. In most cases, they can even be violent(like hurting or _killing_ anyone who stands in their way of being with the love of their life). That about sums it up.

Shoutout to presea221 for the reviews! And for always checking up on my story! You're the best!

Byyyeeee!


	13. Chapter 12

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 12**

Khartai: It's my time to shine!

Aster: ...please stay a million miles away from me.

Me: That's not happening anytime soon…

Angelica: Well can she at least vanish somewhere so she'll never see us again?

Me: It's not that easy…

Khartai: Not until I get _my_ Aster!

Jesse: I know we're not supposed to hit girls, but can I at least shove her?

Jaden: I'll help!

Me: Calm down. Let me just start already.

Khartai: *ready to pummel Angelica*

Yeah don't mind what's happening here…

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters and settings(except Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, Vergil, and Khartai.)

There are little _steamy_ parts here \070/. Nothing 18+, just short snippets(I'll tell you when I'm ready for the lemon). This chapter mainly focuses on Korísatanikí and Khartai, how they are growing their grudges on certain people.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

Chapter 12!

* * *

/ _Someone told me, "Stay away from things that aren't yours."_ /

/ _But was he yours if he wanted me so bad?_ /

— "Pacify Her" by Melanie Martinez

* * *

*Yellow Dorms*

How did the disappearance of the boys pass around so quickly?

Some of the girls were freaking out, saying they shouldn't be gone, while others couldn't care less. Plus, it wasn't normal for students to be out in the middle of the night, especially when they ended up being gone for more than an hour or so. It obviously affected the atmosphere when Angelica and Aster returned. The people nearby shot questioning glances towards them, or gave dirty looks. Once they finally got to Angelica's room, the girl let out a sigh, "Didn't think the incident would have an effect on the dorm."

"What's gonna happen when those boys wake up?" Aster asked.

"Korísatanikí already made sure that they would have no memory of tonight. So when they're conscious again, they'll just assume that they were tired or something. But then there's Taylor…"

||Don't worry about that, Fos. I made sure he doesn't show his form out in the open. As to his absence…that will be a problem.||

"He'll likely be visiting his parents, too…that's not good…"

Aster frowned, 'That demon said he could do whatever he wanted, now he's actually going to his parents to do…I don't even want to think about that.'

"Well…at least there isn't any ties others can make to you." The boy said. Angelica nodded.

"And we both made it in one piece."

||Bad luck for the perverts.||

Angelica rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, Skotádi. You can go do…whatever you said you wanted to do. Make sure it doesn't have _anything_ to do with us."

||No no, I'll wait. I need to wait. I'll just hang around in your conscious.||

Angelica was about to say something before Korísatanikí cut her off, ||I won't peak~ I promise~|| Her face turned bright red at the comment. Aster gave her a questioning look.

"What did she say?" There was a bitterness in his voice, mainly because he still hated the demon. Why does Angelica still talk to her so calmly?

"I-It's nothing. R-Really." She stammered. Aster raised an eyebrow, but he didn't ask again. Instead, he got on the bed, pulling Angelica with him, and kissed the girl passionately. She melted into the kiss, placing a hand on the other's chest. She felt Aster lick her bottom lip, asking for entrance, which she allowed. His tongue slipped in, exploring the inside, as the other's tongue responded by battling with him. Of course, Aster has won, so he continued roaming around, savoring how Angelica tasted, while the girl moaned and tangled her hand in his hair. When the need for air became too great, they reluctantly broke the kiss, a thin trail of saliva connected to their mouths, as they caught their breath.

Aster looked at the scarf around her neck and grinned, "You know, you don't have to hide your neck from me anymore, it doesn't bother me."

Angelica's blush darkened, as she wordlessly untied the scarf, pulling it off and revealing the scar. Aster didn't act in disgust, instead, he spent a few moments touching the mark with care, before planting more soft kisses along it. Then, he licked a certain part of the skin. Angelica felt shivers go down her spine, and Aster smiled at the reaction. He continued finding spots which the girl liked, he knew because of the soft moans that would come out of her mouth.

Angelica by instinct held onto Aster's shoulders, grabbing his attention, "My turn."

She attacked the boy's neck, making sure to cover every part. Aster let a little sound escape, as he smiled, "You caught me off guard…"

"That's the point."

The pro duelist had never bothered going out with any of his fans, or any other celebrity that would make him look better. That was just something for publicity. So even though this was a bit new for both of them, they didn't feel uncomfortable, since it was the person they cared for.

Aster looked back at Angelica, "I love you."

The other smiled, "I love you, too."

As they shared another passionate kiss, Angelica was beginning to realize her fatigue, 'Guess the ritual took a lot out of me today.'

When they broke apart, Aster had also noticed that the girl looked tired, "You're worn out, huh?"

She nodded, "Even though I wasn't necessarily in control of my body, it still internally took some energy."

Aster sighed, "Can't blame you, that whole transformation thing looked very intense."

||It took me _years_ to master it at first. But once I got the hang of it, the only problem was recovering from it fast enough.||

Angelica rolled her eyes, "I thought you spent most of your time in the Underworld torturing…prisoners…" she felt very disturbed while saying that. Aster winced a bit.

||Yeah, but sometimes when the little toys break, they aren't fun anymore, so I'd spend that remaining time perfecting the ritual, that is…until I get another _playmate_ ~||

"You psycho…" Angelica muttered, and Korísatanikí laughed.

||You already know me well~||

"It's not your fault you're like this though…"

||Hm? I don't know what you mean…||

"Uh…"

"Wait, what's wrong?" Aster asked, worried about the sudden change in tone.

||...Fos…?||

Angelica shook her head, "N-Never mind. Even if I said anything about it, there isn't any point, it isn't like I could do anything."

||...||

Angelica laid on the bed, sighing sadly, "Don't try finding out, Skotádi. There's really nothing important, or even _interesting_ about it…"

||Whatever. I'll be on my way now, mind if you open up a way to the Underworld?||

"Um…sure I guess." The girl got up, leaving Aster extremely confused.

"Angelica…?" he began, but then Angelica started murmuring a chant, as she did, a black portal appeared. Aster stared at it, then back at her.

He then saw what seemed to be a silhouette of something with wings and a tail, and he heard the demon's voice.

||See ya later, _agóri egó_.||

The figure disappeared into the portal, right before it closed. Aster opened his mouth to question Angelica, but she beat him to it, "Korísatanikí sometimes goes back to the Underworld when she wants, so I need to open a portal in order for her to get there. We're not completely separated, but since over there is basically my second home, she can leave my conscious for a while to visit it."

Aster nodded slowly, "Right…almost forgot about the Underworld…"

Before he could ask something else, Angelica looked straight at him, "You do _not_ want to know what's down there."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Angelica climbed back in bed, and laid down. Aster looked around, "I should be going back to my yacht today. I know someone is going to call me about another fan meet-up or something."

The girl frowned, "Well…guess that makes sense…"

Aster noticed the disappointment in her voice, so he leaned down and kissed her forehead, "I promise to come back in the morning, okay? I'm pretty sure I can make some arrangements with my schedule."

Angelica smiled again, "Alright, Aster. Goodnight…" She got comfortable in the bed, closing her eyes. Soon, she was fast asleep, which was to be expected from how tired she seemed. Aster lightly chuckled to himself, caressing the girl's cheek, and admiring the peaceful look she always had when sleeping. He got up and walked to the door, but before he closed the door, he looked at the sleeping figure and smiled.

"Goodnight, my sweet angel."

* * *

*Another Area*

"You have got to be kidding me!"

"What the hell does _she_ have that I don't?!"

"That little whore…she's toying with him!"

"And he's actually _falling_ for it!"

"What does someone as important and popular as him see in a _nobody_ like her?!"

"Dammit! It's not fair!"

"They're both stupid!"

"I swear that—"

"QUIT YOUR OBNOXIOUS WHINING!"

Everyone froze when they heard her sharp voice, one that would pierce right through anyone's soul. Especially with how angry she was, it made matters worse. No one wanted to push her over the edge, so they immediately stopped talking, and looked at the infuriated girl. Khartai.

"Let's get one thing straight…" she pointed at the group, then at herself, "... _you_ are helping _me_ , got that? And another thing, stop wasting your breath! You're all bark and no bite at this point! Save your insults until we actually get to the brat, alright?"

They all nodded.

"Angelica is in the Yellow Dorms right now, she's sleeping. We could use this opportunity to just get her, but that's too risky, because people would go look for her, and we'd be exposed. Plus, that's not the style I'm going for right now." She smirked, "The style I'm going for is to win the competition. And you are all gonna help me, understand?"

"Yes!" They replied in unison.

Khartai swept her hair back, "That girl should know that there's nothing _charming_ about her. Sure she's _pretty_ , but from what I've heard, Aster isn't for looks."

One of the boys was confused, "Then why go all the way to make _yourself_ look pretty?"

Khartai growled and grabbed the boy by the collar, "One more word out of you and I'll stitch that mouth shut."

The boy trembled and nodded frantically, "O-Okay! I w-won't say that again!"

She let him go, "Idiots…"

Her "best friends" came by her side and glared at the boy, obviously trying to be _imitating_. The two girls were sorta like Khartai, just less smart and competitive.

"That little freak doesn't deserve Aster…" Khartai mumbled, "We don't even know anything about her…wait…"

She turned to the two of her friends, "Amelia! Corrina! See if you can dig up any dirt about Angelica, anything that would make her look bad. I'm sure she's hiding something."

"Leave it to us." Amelia smirked, and Corrina nodded.

"This is our specialty."

They were off. Khartai looked back at the boys, "If you guys still wanna get a shot at her, be my guest. Just know that Aster might get protective, and might shove you off."

"Whatever." One of them scoffed, "I never liked that duelist anyway. His ego is worse than Chazz's. And that's saying something."

Khartai glared, "I swear to god…"

Before she could say anything else, the boys left, leaving her to go back to the Obelisk Blue Dorms.

* * *

*Obelisk Blue Dorms*

Alexis was wandering to her room, when she ran into Mindy and Jasmine. She groaned as they approached her, "What is it now?"

"Nothing. We're just curious about Angelica. After all, she must be one of a kind." Jasmine stated.

The blonde narrowed her eyes, completely unconvinced, "Now you're asking about the girl who you had a grudge against for taking your crush? I already told you two to leave them be."

"Why do you have to be like that?" Mindy pouted, "It was just a question!"

"Besides, we—" Jasmine was about to say something before she saw a certain someone come into view, "Oh no…"

Alexis blinked, "What?"

"Look."

They turned to see Khartai going to her room, which wasn't too far from where they were standing. She seemed pretty upset. When was she ever in a cheerful to begin with?

"Khartai," Mindy sighed, "she's more clingy to Aster than us combined."

"What a shocker." Alexis rolled her eyes. The two others glared before going back on topic.

"That girl thinks she's the queen and everything. Every time someone mentions how cute Aster is, or how they'd want to hook up with him, she'd just cut right into the conversation and burst. Khartai _really_ wants Aster to be hers, like she is _literally_ going to do it. She's not fangirling or anything like that, she's dead serious."

Alexis sighed as well, "I figured that out earlier."

Jasmine blinked in confusion, "How?"

"We ran into her when class was done. She was beyond angry at Angelica, so she grabbed her and threatened her."

Mindy crossed her arms, "Wow. She went that far?"

The other girl put her hands on her hips, "That's not cool."

"Hey there. Fancy seeing you around again."

They all faced Khartai, who had just arrived, seeing them chatting from afar, "So what are you social butterflies gossiping about this time?" She glared at Alexis, "And what are _you_ saying to them?"

The blonde girl clenched her fists, "That's for us to know, and for you to never find out."

"Hm…I got something to ask." Khartai smirked, "Do you know _anything_ about Angelica? She barely joined Duel Academy a few days ago, and you're already trusting her? May I remind you about the many disasters that have happened here? Do you want _another_ one to come?"

Now Khartai was really starting to get on Alexis's nerves, " _You_ may not know anything, but I do. And she isn't anything like _yourself_ , that's for sure. She's the girl anyone would ask for. And guess what? Aster and Angelica chose each other, so suck it up, and stop acting like a baby without it's pacifier."

Mindy and Jasmine were shocked at how protective Alexis was getting, while Khartai scoffed, "Like you know anything about being in a relationship. All you have is Jaden, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't like you back. Tough luck." She snickered when the blonde glared right at her, her knuckles turning white.

"Why you…" she muttered.

"Let's not cause a scene, okay? Besides, I don't have any reason to fight with you. Just stay out of my business, and I'll stay out of yours. Sounds simple enough, right?" Khartai walked the other direction, waving mockingly at them with a large smile on her face.

* * *

*The next morning*

Angelica was greeted with the morning sun as it shone on her face. Slowly, she opened her eyes, seeing as it was a new day. She then put a hand over her left eye, knowing that she didn't wear an eyepatch anymore, so there was a more likely chance of people purposely or accidentally seeing it. Considering the many boys that still want her, and Khartai, it was an even greater chance. Still, she didn't want to hide it anymore. So the girl sat up, stretched a bit, and was about to head to the bathroom when a knock was heard on the door.

"Who is it?" She asked.

"Oh nobody in particular, just wanted to come by and see a few things. Can you open up?"

Angelica felt uneasy. It wasn't a voice she recognized, and it sounded bitter. She stayed in her place for a few moments, unsure if she should open the door or not.

||Aren't you curious?||

Angelica slightly jumped and whispered, "When did you get back?"

||About a few hours ago. Seeing as you were asleep, I let you be. Come on! Open the door! I wanna see if those students are looking for trouble~||

The girl felt even more nervous, cause Korísatanikí probably was looking for a new victim. Yet, she went up to the door and opened it, only to see two girls standing there, one was from the Obelisk Blue, while the other was from Ra Yellow.

"Is there something you need?" Angelica smiled.

One of them said, "You're the new one, Angelica, right?"

Said girl nodded, "That's me. What are your names?"

The Obelisk Blue girl pointed at herself, "I'm Amelia," she pointed at her friend, "and that's Corrina." The girl waved.

Angelica narrowed her eyes, 'They're familiar somehow…'

Corrina glanced at the scarf around her neck, then at the covered eye, then back at her visible one, "You really seem special, I mean, Aster Phoenix wanted _you_. Out of the hundreds of girls who wanted him, he ignored them all and chose you. Honestly, it's an honor."

"You should be proud of yourself." Amelia forced a smile, it didn't fool the other in front of her, despite her act of innocence, "Really, Aster is one of a kind, and if he is…then there must be some other _interesting_ things about you too, right?"

Angelica sighed, "Well…sorry but I'm just your average girl. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Now _that's_ a lie!" Corrina shot back, "Look at you! You're like an angel on Earth! It's no wonder why all the boys are in a trance when looking at you! Not to mention other things, like that bracelet! That looks like it costs a million dollars! Including that necklace. What gem even is that? Nobody even knows anything about you. You can at least give us some backstory here and not leave us hanging! Does Aster even know anything? If he doesn't, then why does he bother going after _you_?!"

Amelia face palmed, "Idiot…" she glared at the raging girl, "This is why you're still stuck in the Ra Yellow and on the brink of being downgraded!"

"What?!" Corrina glared back, "And you think _you're_ so smart!"

"That's because I am! Or at least smarter than you'll ever be!"

"Oh yeah?! Well you're more annoying than fish!"

"How the hell does that even make sense?!"

"You make no sense!"

"This just proves my point on how stupid you are!"

"You're the stupid one!"

"Say that again! I dare you!"

"You. Are. Stupid!"

"Why you…!"

"Ahem…"

Angelica coughed, gaining the bickering girls' attention, "I know you two are in the middle of something here, but do you mind doing it somewhere else? If you haven't noticed, it's still the morning, people are probably still sleeping, and some are tired, while you're yelling at the top of your lungs. I don't have anything to say to you, so just leave. I'm getting a headache just by listening to you girls having a cat fight." She was about to close the door before she looked back at them, "One more thing, next time you're trying to find things to gossip about just to make me look bad, try not to make it obvious." She slammed the door.

Amelia growled, "God dammit…"

"At least we know one thing," Corrina pointed out, "if she in such a hurry to push us away, and she didn't want to answer us, then that means she _is_ hiding something!"

The other girl chuckled, "Looks like you _do_ have some brain cells left in there…"

"Amelia…!"

* * *

*Later*

Angelica sighed when she heard the two girls leave, 'Now _that's_ something you don't see everyday…'

||Little pawns that belong to Khartai…they're not very bright that's for sure…||

"Ugh…it's not the time to think about if those two are good followers or not!"

||Yeah, yeah. Whatever.||

The girl went to the bathroom and washed her face. Then, she sat on the bed and put her hand on her forehead in frustration, "They're really going to be a pain…"

||Where's your Prince Charming? Hm?||

Angelica slightly clenched her fists, but had a blush on her cheeks, "He has a name! A-And he said there were some things he needed to take care of…so…"

The demon laughed, ||You have no idea how cute you look when you're embarrassed! Haha! I bet agóri egó can agree!||

"Stop teasing me!"

||But it's fun!||

Angelica groaned and buried her face in her hands, "I'm not in the mood…"

She sat there in silence, not liking how the morning turned out, and thinking of a way to lighten up, until she heard yet another knock. Thinking it was the two girls again, she groaned, "I thought I told you to get lost!"

"Uh…wrong guess…?"

Angelica immediately regretted yelling that. She quickly ran to the door, and opened it to find the silver haired boy she loved. The girl sighed in relief, and then looked at him in guilt, "I'm sorry for yelling like that."

"Slept wrong?" Aster asked out of concern, even if it sounded like a joke.

Angelica hugged him, "No. Just started the day off bad…"

"Judging by how you reacted, I'm thinking someone visited you earlier."

They went inside and sat on the bed, Angelica nodded, "Some friends of Khartai. Amelia and Corrina."

Aster understandably became angry. What did they want this time? "Did they say anything to you?"

The girl laid down, staring at the ceiling, "They said that they were curious about me, and wanted to get to know me better. Now, the funny thing is Corrina was _way_ too obvious, mostly cause she was too jealous," she giggled, "so her and her friend ended up fighting, yelling at each other as if their life depended on it. It's even more annoying since it's early in the morning. I told them to buzz off, but I don't know if they'll be coming back or not."

Aster climbed on top, straddling the other underneath, "You're really stressed out. Let me help you calm down a bit." he smiled. Angelica blushed and nodded, smiling back.

So, the boy leaned down and kissed her, slipping his tongue in, while he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling them closer. He licked the roof of her mouth, pleased when she moaned and put her arms around his neck. Aster wanted to see something, so he began running his hands along Angelica's body, still keeping their lips connected, so that he could see what she wanted. The girl didn't protest, she accepted the gesture, some parts made her shiver a bit, like a few soft spots she didn't even know she had. By this point, Angelica was beginning to feel slightly aroused at the heat. When they separated to gain their breath, they were both panting and had faint blushes on their cheeks. Aster smiled, and nipped on the other's ear, causing her to gasp. He then switched to hastily getting rid of the purple scarf, as it wasn't necessary anymore. He worked his way down Angelica's neck, licking certain places that sent more shivers down the girl's spine. Aster stopped at the part of the shirt that was covering a good part of her collarbone(it wasn't a v-neck). He pulled down the shirt a bit to reveal more skin, kissing and licking parts near her collarbone, even slightly biting one place. Angelica lightly moaned, placing her hand on the boy's chest.

"You at least want some good news?" Aster suddenly asked, facing her with a smile, "I was able to reschedule some meet and greets, plus there aren't any matches I have to go to. That means I can stay here with _you_."

Angelica smiled, "Glad to hear it, Aster." She pulled him down for another kiss, "I didn't want to be left here without you…"

"And I didn't want to _leave_ …"

They shared one more kiss, before Angelica remembered something else, "I forgot, I still have to go to class, and I think one is about to start in a few minutes…"

"That's too bad…" Aster sighed.

They both got up, and Angelica went to the bathroom again to get ready, "I'll be back!" So Aster waited in the room. He looked around, and noticed a drawer that was slightly open, 'Should I look in? I don't think Angelica would mind…'

He fully opened it, but all he saw was two neatly stacked decks, 'Wait, she has more than one?'

Out of curiosity, Aster picked up the first one, which seemed to be used lately. He scanned through the cards, seeing familiar ones, the cards that were used in her duel against Jaden, 'So this is her Element Deck, with the four goddesses…then what is…?'

He glanced at the second deck. It was deeper in the drawer, as if it was forgotten, or Angelica never wanted to use it. It looked somewhat old, and it was clear it had been a while since someone had even touched it, let alone used it in a duel. But there was something else about it. Something felt…off about the deck. It was a strange feeling, and it could never be dismissed by someone as cautious as Aster. Why had Angelica not brought this up yet?

'What's going on here?'

Aster head footsteps approaching, most likely from Angelica, 'Shoot! I don't wanna get caught!', so he quickly closed the drawer, acting as if nothing happened, with the Element deck still in his hand.

The girl walked in, looking at the deck, then at Aster in confusion, "What's up?"

"Oh nothing, I was just looking at your deck, not the cards though don't worry." Aster smiled, hanging the cards to her. She grabbed them, and smiled back.

"Thanks. Well, better get going…what time is it anyway?" She asked. The boy looked around the room and found a clock on the wall.

"It's 8:45."

"So class starts in fifteen minutes," Angelica sighed, "I hope Jaden is already awake."

Aster chuckled, "Knowing him, that's likely not gonna happen anytime soon."

"True."

Angelica then grabbed Aster's hand, leading him out of the room, "We better go give him a wake-up call then!"

"Woah! Slow down!"

* * *

*A few minutes later*

They had both just started walking hand in hand to the Slifer Red Dorms. On the way there, they ran into some boy staring at Angelica, he winked "Hey cutie~"

Aster glared, "And who the hell are you?"

The boy smirked, "Me? I'm just your average guy. And I just happened to pass by a _beautiful_ young lady~"

He leaned closer to the girl's face, "Tell me, did it hurt when you fell from heaven~?"

||Pffftttt…HAHAHAHA! That's such an overused pick-up line, it's not even romantic anymore! This guy is killing me!||

Angelica closed her eyes, "Sorry, but the problem is that I didn't come from heaven…" she opened her eyes to show the visible one being lifeless and cold, and a sinister grin was on her face, "Now, why don't you find out _for_ me if it hurts when you go to hell? Wouldn't that be fun~?"

The boy started backing away slowly, fear clearly visible on his face, "N-No thank you. I-I'm alright…"

"Then stop using stupid pick-up lines on me and never come near us again!" If looks could kill, her's would definitely have ended the other person in front of her. He ran away in an instant, yelling in pure panic.

Aster looked at Angelica in shock, "What was that all about?"

The girl looked at him with her normal eyes, giving him a soft smile, "I had to scare him off, or else he'd keep coming back with more cringeworthy lines. So I stopped my polite act, and he went off."

"Now I'm pretty terrified." Aster muttered, while Angelica just giggled.

As they held hands once more, something passed through in Angelica's mind, and she stopped walking.

Aster looked back, slightly worried, "What's wrong?"

She looked at him straight in the eye, "There's something you want to ask me, isn't there?"

The boy froze. It was true, he had been meaning to ask her about the second deck she had in the drawer, but he didn't know if it was a good idea or not, he thought that it wasn't a big deal, and that it was just her substitute deck. But the more he thought about it, the more tempting it was to bring up the subject. Well, as he had already figured out, pretty much nothing gets past Angelica.

Aster sighed in defeat, "Yeah. I wanted to ask you about—"

"It's an Angel and Demon Deck."

Again, the silvered hair boy froze, forgetting for a second that she could read minds. He then processed what he heard, "Angel and Demon Deck?"

Angelica nodded, "It's a deck I prefer to never use. You see, it was destined to be in my hands when I grew up, so that I'd be able to unlock the full potential of my power. After I gained the ability over the four elements, and had the four goddesses residing in my soul, these cards appeared before me. I didn't know what the cards exactly were, so I used them against one of the people I knew in a duel. And…"

"What happened?"

Angelica looked down, "Battle damage became real. All the attacks inflicted pain to my opponents. I didn't know what to think, so I never wanted to use it again. But…because Korísatanikí lived inside me, and anger overcame, leaving her more chances to come out, I used the deck more and more against the people I hated. One time…it was so bad that…" she clenched her fists.

"That I…actually sent them to Hell with…a card"

Aster's eyes widened in shock, "I thought you can only do that through a ritual…"

The girl shook her head, "This card was made with the Underworld's dark energy, and _my_ negative energy. All I had to do was play it, then their fates were sealed. If I were to win, that person would be swallowed up by the seal and be sent straight to Hell…"

"But…what if you…?"

Angelica bit her lip, "If I were to lose the duel, then I'd be punished…but I don't know how…"

She hugged herself, gripping onto her arms, "I didn't want to…all those people I sent down…they…they don't deserve to suffer!" Tears began to form, "Everyone who is sent to the Underworld…they… they're tortured every single day! A-And…they live out their greatest fears…and die over and over again! B-But each second they die, they're automatically reborn again…it's a never ending cycle of pain and sorrow! I…I m-made them bear it all!"

||Ha! Stop lying to yourself! You _enjoy_ making them suffer, you _love_ to send people to the bottomless pits of hell! Admit it! You felt _great_ when they disappeared right before your eyes, knowing that they'd suffer for eternity, until they're broken to the core!||

"NO!" Angelica cried, "You're lying! I hated it! I hated every second of it! None of them deserved that! It's all my fault!" She couldn't hold it anymore. She sobbed, letting tears flow down her face like rivers. Aster embraced her tightly, rubbing her back, and waiting. She continued to sob, until she calmed down, hugging the boy back. They pulled back a little, and Aster was the first to say something.

"Angelica, if it was anger that took control, then it wasn't your fault. If you didn't want to do that, then I believe you. I know you'd never want to hurt people the way you did." He smiled, "You've got friends now, and you have me. We'll help you in any way we can from now on. Never forget that."

Angelica wiped her tears away and smiled, "I won't. I'll always remember that. Thank you, Aster."

"Like I said, I'd do anything to make you happy."

They shared a passionate kiss, expressing their love in more than just words. It filled their hearts with warmth and happiness, knowing that they felt complete with one another. There was no one else who could replace them, and nothing would replace their love. That's the vow they told themselves. That's what they promised themselves with their souls. Of course…a few people just wouldn't allow it to be this way, whether they'd be human or not.

Someone was watching from the distance, she clenched her fists, and bit her lip in frustration, "Dammit…that little brat…!"

And someone else was watching through Angelica herself…

||Fos…promises were made to be broken. You'll just have to learn that the hard way…||

Something still lingered in the demon's thought though…

||What wasn't my fault…? What did she mean by…?||

|It's not your fault you're like this though…|

||Is there something I don't know about? But that's impossible, I'm able to go into her conscious in order to find out, but I can't find it anywhere! Did she hide it from me? Why doesn't she want me to see it? Am I not the way I was created to be…?|| she groaned.

||Great, now I'm doubting myself. I need to stop worrying about this for now…what I see right now may help me…||

The demon noticed Khartai still stalking, glaring at Angelica with pure hatred and jealousy.

||She's perfect. Except for the part about having a vendetta against Fos…she may be _very_ handy. If that girl really wants Aster to herself, I'll give her just that…||

All of a sudden, Khartai felt a chill go down her spine, as if she was being watched by someone. She looked around, only to see nothing, just the regular Duel Academy setting, "What was that all about…?"

When Angelica and Aster started walking again, the girl looked straight at Khartai, knowing she had been there for a while, 'What does _she_ want now?'

||Shouldn't that be obvious~||

Angelica didn't want Aster to hear her argue openly, so she closed her eyes, focusing on speaking to the demon through thought, 'And why are you so happy about it?!'

||Like I could care less about your boyfriend. He's just a pain to deal with.||

'Why do you still want to get rid of him?!'

||Don't think I've forgotten about my priority, Fos.||

'Screw that! You weren't meant for it!'

||What are you talking about?! For as long as I can remember, that was my objective for the past hundreds of thousands of years!||

Angelica unknowingly lightly squeezed Aster's hand out of anger, 'No it wasn't! That's just—'

She stopped herself. Was there any point in even telling her?

||Just what?! I'm all ears!||

The girl stayed silent.

||You know what! Whatever! I don't have time to mess with you!||

With that, she disappeared. Angelica sighed, 'Why did it have to turn out like that…?'

"Angelica…?"

She was snapped back to reality, looking back at Aster, who's face showed much concern, "Is…something wrong…?"

She looked down, "I…it's…" she took a deep breath, "It's Korísatanikí…she still wants me to become like her…"

"But why?!" Aster exclaimed.

"Supposedly, it's her purpose in being here…she's meant to guide me to take my father's side. But…that's really not who she is…"

"Then what?" The boy asked.

Angelica grabbed the black gem on her necklace, "She's my darker side, yeah, but she wasn't meant to disrupt the balance of light and dark in me, she was meant to keep that balance stable. Think of it as…a gentle darkness…sorta like Jaden…"

Aster understood that part. He had heard about where The Supreme King came from, and why. He stayed silent, to let Angelica continue.

"Korísatanikí is a demon, she was born that way. But she wasn't meant to make me become one either. She was meant to help me, to keep me from ever upsetting the balance within my soul, and she was never to do the same. The thing is…the darkness came from the Underworld…it's more powerful than anything…so my father was able to manipulate this dark side before I was born. That's why…"

Aster wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer, as he rubbed her arm reassuringly. Angelica sighed, and gave a gentle smile, "I guess I'm not the only one who was born with a burden…"

The other smiled back, "If she really wasn't created to do that, then I can't stay mad at her forever…"

"Neither can I." Angelica replied, "After all, a part of me still considers her as a friend."

Aster nodded, "Hopefully, one day, there won't be any more problems with your past, or origin. And you can live on peacefully."

" _We_ can live peacefully." The girl corrected. Aster softly chuckled at this, and they kept walking.

Angelica then had a sad look on her face. Luckily, Aster hadn't noticed, 'But what happens when…you leave before me…? How would I be able to know if you were to be reborn with me…?'

She quickly brought back her smile, putting that thought to the side. It would be a long time before it would happen anyways, it's too soon to be thinking about it.

* * *

Khartai has not heard their conversation, but she saw that it made Angelica upset. She heard only one word though…a name…

"Korísatanikí…" she said to herself, "That's such a strange name…it doesn't even sound like any language…it sounds…mythical…"

She smirked, "So you _are_ hiding something…well not for long…"

* * *

*Slifer Red Dorms*

"Jaden! Jesse! Are you awake?!"

"Don't start slacking on us!"

Jesse opened the door, "What're you two doing? Not that I'm complaining."

Aster rolled his eyes, "Angelica wanted to make sure Jaden was awake before class started."

"I'm up! I'm up!" The brunette practically leaped out bed, he was already dressed in his normal wear, with his significant red jacket on.

"For once…" Aster muttered. Jaden pouted.

"I heard that!"

Angelica giggled, "Calm down. Let's get everyone else!"

"Let's go!"

* * *

After finding the rest, they walked to their class. Angelica gave Aster a quick kiss, as she energetically ran to catch up. Atticus was being a creep as usual, so Alexis decided to knock some more sense into her older brother. Everyone was laughing and making jokes. On the way, another boy ran up to Angelica out of nowhere, and grabbed her hand, "Hey! You're the new girl! You look _so cute~_!"

The girl was caught off guard by the surprise, "Um…w-who are you…?"

"The name's Vergil! Vergil Wray! And you're Angelica! You're unbelievably beautiful and sweet!"

"Uh…thanks…?"

She tried pulling away her hand, but the boy brought it up and kissed it, "I want you to be my princess~! Is that alright~?"

"Sorry pal, she's already taken." Atticus put a hand on Vergil's shoulder.

"You mind leaving now?" Jesse crossed his arms.

Vergil frowned, "Why? I want to talk to Angelica!"

Said girl slapped him, which shocked everyone else, "Do they have to repeat themselves? I'm not going to be your _princess_. And I don't want to 'talk'. You can go!"

"Wow Virgin! You're getting scolded by a girl?!"

The boy growled, his tone of voice completely changing, "It's Vergil, dumbass!"

They all turned their attention to two boys who seemed older, they were smirking. The one who called spoke up again, "We're just messing with yah. You're such an _amateur_."

The other boy scoffed, "Playing Mr. Nice Guy isn't gonna get you anywhere."

Vergil sighed, "Whatever. See you bastards later." He glared at Atticus and Jesse, before running off with his friends.

Syrus let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, "What was that…?"

"I had to deal with someone like that earlier…" Angelica sighed, "Except he was trying to woo me with pick-up lines."

Jaden glanced at her, "I'm surprised you slapped him. You're usually patient and polite."

"I have my limits too, you know." The girl said, she turned to Atticus and Jesse, "Thanks for what you did."

"No problem." Jesse smiled.

"They should have already known by now that you're with Aster. They're just blind." Atticus shook his head.

As they continued walking, Angelica looked at Jesse, who would stare at Jaden for long periods of time, before forcefully taking interest in something else around them. She rolled her eyes, they probably would need some help. Then she looked back at Syrus, who was fidgeting, occasionally glancing at Chazz.

"What's wrong?" Angelica went to the smaller boy's side. He jumped.

"N-Nothing! Why would something be wrong?"

The girl rolled her eyes, "I can read minds, Syrus. Plus, I can tell cause you're fidgeting. It's about Chazz, isn't it?"

Syrus looked at her in shock, before sighing in defeat, "Yeah…I've been feeling weird about him lately…"

"Like how…"

"Like—"

"Hey Sy! Angelica! You guys coming or what?"

They were interrupted by Jaden calling them, waving his arm like an idiot again.

"Yeah! Hold up Jay!" Syrus yelled, running towards their friends.

Angelica giggled, "We got another one…" she ran as well, "Wait up!"

* * *

*Black Void*

||Fos…why…?||

…

||Why must you make everything so difficult…?||

…

||Why couldn't this be easier…?||

…

||If things keep going like this…||

…

||Then…||

…

||I won't have any other choice…||

* * *

/ _And all the people say, "You can't wake up this is not a dream!"_ /

/ _"You're part of a machine, you are not a human being!"_ /

/ _"With your face all made up, living on a screen."_ /

/ _"Low on self esteem, so you run on gasoline!"_ /

/ _Oh, oh, oh, oh~_ /

/ _I think there's a flaw in my code._ /

/ _Oh, oh, oh, oh~_ /

/ _These voices won't leave me alone!_ /

/ _Well my heart is gold and my hands are cold._ /

— "Gasoline" by Halsey

* * *

*Author's Note*

0_0

Oh…my…freaking…god…

ALMOST THREE WEEKS WITHOUT UPDATING?!

HOLY CRAP!

I'm so so so sorry! I left you hanging there! _So_ many things came up, I was kinda stuck on one part, school ended that's a plus. _And_ Christmas is coming up! Damn!

I won't be able to work on the story on the 24th and 25th because I'm going to my aunt's house, and on New Year's…well I don't know yet!

Korísatanikí: Holy f**k you took long.

Khartai: No kidding.

Dammit I know!

Well, let's do a quick review! Did you guys like the little make out sessions? I was kinda nervous that it would be absolutely horrible. But it's not bad. Don't worry, Vergil won't be a _major_ character or anything, he's just there. And no he's not the demon from Devil May Cry or anything like that(but I do like that game). And…another ship? It's not a main ship, just like a side-ship that would be mentioned here and there. Cause why not? I think Syrus is a cute, awkward dork.

P.S. I've been watching ALOT of Yugioh. I just finsihed Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V yesterday! I was so sad! The ending got me so confused, happy, mad, and sad at the same time(of course I'm not going to spoil the ending)! Onto Yu-Gi-Oh Vrains! Which is still ongoing, with about 80 or 90 episodes mad so far! If this series is anything like Zexal and Arc-V, I'm gonna weep over deaths.

Well that wraps it up! Hopefully the long wait won't happen again! And if it does…you have the right to sue me.

Thank you presea221 for reading and enjoying! I apologize for making you wait so long!

Byyyeeee!


	14. Chapter 13

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 13**

Me: Holidays are over…;-;

Angelica: *sigh* don't act like that, it was boring what you did at your aunt's house.

Me: True, it wasn't interesting at all. Oh well.

Korísatanikí: Screw that family sh*t, we're way better than them.

Jaden: Maybe saying that is a bit too much…

Me: Meh, I don't mind.

Aster: Okay…?

Lemme start now.

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX or any of the characters and settings. Only Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, and Khartai belong to me. You already know by now.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

I've got something… _special_ in this chapter

Hope you're ready Aster… ;)

And…begin!

* * *

/ _Oooohhhhh_ /

/ _Senpai love me, just turn your gaze away from that sleaze for me_ /

/ _I'm the only one you should see_ /

/ _Senpai love me, I'll watch you through your window tonight~_ /

— "Senpai Love Me" by Yandere Dev & Michaela Laws(Based on the game Yandere Simulator)

* * *

*After class*

"I activate this trap card!"

"Wait…doesn't that mean…?"

"It's a tie!"

 **Angelica: 0LP**

 **Jaden: 0LP**

Jaden laughed, "That was a sick duel! I almost won, too!"

Angelica smiled, "I may be okay with a tie, but losing is something I'm not fond of."

"You should be proud of yourself." Chazz remarked, "Not everyone can beat him, or at least end in a tie."

"I believe you've learned that from experience?"

The black haired boy froze. Jesse began laughing, "She gotcha there, Chazz!"

"Shut up."

Aster rolled his eyes, "Hey, Angelica was just stating facts."

"Why you…!"

Angelica nervously laughed, "L-Let's all cool down a bit!"

Chazz scoffed and crossed his arms, "Whatever…"

Jaden beamed, "Those goddesses were epic, too!"

Bastion nodded, "I've noticed they all have their own unique personalities as well. It's fascinating to say the least."

Jesse looked at Angelica, "How exactly _did_ they come to you?"

The girl shrugged, "More like I created them. It's simple. Four goddesses. Four elements. Four accidents."

"Accidents?" Aster repeated.

Angelica nodded, "Let me explain in order. Fotiá. I was in a house fire, because someone found me and wanted to take me in as a small child, they thought I was homeless. Out of rage towards the owner, I spilled gasoline and threw a lighter. The house caught on fire, I was severely burned, and on the brink of death. But once I was out, all my wounds were healed, and the card was found in my pocket."

"Neró. In my depressed state, I was lost in my own thoughts, and didn't realize I went into a large lake. I was drowning, until someone noticed me and brought me out. The card lied next to the lake a few minutes later."

"Gisa. I was watering a woman's flowers since I wanted to be helpful. Her backyard was _huge_. There was a large hole in the ground, the woman said it was because they were trying to build something, and they were gonna fill it in soon. But I saw a small bunny covered in dirt, trying to climb the rocks and get out. There was nothing useful around me, so I tried reaching in to grab the creature. Well, as you'd expect, it didn't work and I fell in head first, hitting a large, sharp rock. When I woke up, people were dumping pile of dirt on me, since they thought I was dead. They were pretty surprised to see me alive. One person even tried throwing something at me while screaming, 'ZOMBIE'"

Jaden chuckled, "I'd be freaked out, too."

Jesse also laughed, "What did they think you were? Some green monster who ate brains?"

Everyone laughed for a while, until they got quiet so Angelica could finish, "So yeah, after that, the goddess card was given to me by the woman, since she found it and assumed it was mine."

"Finally, Aéras. Now this one took a while to recover from, since two things happened at different times. First, I unknowingly inhaled a certain poisonous gas, which almost killed me. The white gem on my bracelet glowed, so I knew it meant something. Then…I don't really know this part since I was like…about three…but from what my 'mother' told me, a tornado hit our area, and me being the curious and stupid child that I was, I went out of the house, immediately getting into a real bad situation."

Axel processed everything, "So you were in four life-threatening accidents, and that created the four element goddesses?"

"Yeah, that's basically it."

"Wow…" Alexis said, "Weren't you frightened?"

"Are you kidding me?!" Angelica replied, "I was petrified! The only reason this didn't drive me completely insane was because I knew about my past, so this was going to happen sooner or later."

"Which one was the most painful?" Syrus asked curiously, earning a few glares from the others.

The girl thought about it for a moment, "If I had to choose…I'd say the fire incident. Heck, I was being burned alive!"

"How can you talk about those accidents without being bothered?" Jim asked.

Angelica shrugged, "It's not a big deal to me. Sure they were serious, but I didn't _die_. Guess I never thought much of them."

Strangely, the four goddesses appeared in their spirit form. They looked around the room, and noticed how intrigued everyone was by the story. They smiled. Jaden and Jesse happened to see them, smiling back. Winged Kuriboh and Ruby appeared as well, still interested in everything about the four spirits. The two boys softly laughed at how playful their duel monsters were with the girls. Chazz saw this, and followed their gaze towards the spirits. Ojama Yellow just so happened to appear.

||They look so pretty!||

"Keep your mouth shut…" The duelist muttered.

Fotiá glared at the small alien.

||Ah! That one scares me!||

"You don't say…"

Angelica giggled, "There she goes again…"

Chazz scoffed and looked away, not wanting to make eye contact with the goddess. But he then noticed Syrus staring, "Uh…what's up with you?"

Syrus was broken out of his trance, "H-Huh?"

"You looked like you were in another world." The taller one replied, "Who's on your mind this time?"

"N-No one!" Syrus shot back, maybe a bit too quickly and loudly. Angelica noticed a light blush on the boy's cheeks but said nothing about it. She knew exactly what was wrong. 'Sometimes feelings can be very complicated…'

Jaden joined in, "C'mon Sy! It can't be that bad!"

Atticus smirked, "Is it still Dark Magician Girl?"

"Why does everyone have to pick on me?!"

Chazz smirked, "It's fun, that's why."

Hassleberry head-locked Syrus, "You're just an easy target, Truesdale! It's not our fault!"

"I'M NOT WEAK!"

Aster sighed, "You guys fight like elementary school kids…"

After another minute of back to back arguing -which seemed to be mainly about Syrus- Alexis became annoyed and stepped in the middle, "Alright, alright. Break it up."

Axel put a hand over his face, "How did they start fighting to begin with?"

"That's 'cause Syrus was spacing out and staring at Chazz." Jesse answered.

Syrus started boiling up a bit, "Look who's—!" Angelica put a hand over his mouth. If he would've finished his sentence, than this argument would have escalated even more.

The girl sighed, "That's quite enough, Syrus. Whatever you were thinking about probably wasn't even important anyway. We'll just forget you were staring like and leave it at that, _right_?" She glared at Chazz, Atticus, and Hassleberry. They gulped and nodded. She smiled again, taking her hand away.

Syrus was filled with relief. He gave Angelica a 'thank you' look before walking away, "I think I'll be going back to my dorm." With that, he left.

Jim sighed, "Hope the little guy's alright."

"That depends on your definition of 'alright'" Angelica said.

Jaden crossed his arms, "I'll probably have to talk to him later…"

"How about—" Aster was cut off by a knock on the door. Was it Syrus again?

"You can come in!" Jaden yelled.

No reply.

"Is anyone even there?!" Chazz shouted.

No answer.

"I'll just go check." Aster sighed. He opened the door. But no one was there. Instead, on the floor, there was a box wrapped in ribbons, and a small piece of paper attached to it. Aster picked up the note and read it.

" _To Aster~_

 _Hope you enjoy my little treat~ I made it_

 _myself~ I do know that you're 'taken', but that doesn't mean we can still be together! I've known you ever since we were children. Do you remember me? Cause I remember you~ How could I not? I'm also curious…what kind of person is Angelica? Well…maybe I'm going a bit too far there. I really want to talk to you~! Don't worry, you'll be getting many more presents~!_

 _Love you~"_

'Oh great. More fan mail.' Aster rolled his eyes, 'But then again…ever since we were children…?'

He looked around once more, before picking up the box and bringing it inside. Everyone's attention was brought to the item.

"What's that?" Angelica asked. Aster didn't answer, he just gave the note to the girl. She began reading it while the others waited patiently. Surprisingly, she remained calm…well that's what everyone thought until she crushed the paper, shoving it in her pocket, "The present's from Khartai."

"How'd you know?" Jesse wondered.

"Because she knows about me, she mentioned knowing Aster since childhood, and the short note sounds like it's written by someone _insanely_ annoying."

"Let me guess…she gave you cookies, huh?" She looked at Aster, who only nodded, showing everyone the box of cookies. But they did _not_ look appetizing. They were a weird dark green color, and the 'chocolate chips' seemed crushed and melted. The edges were slightly burnt, and so was the smell that came out of it, but there was another scent that was vague, but you can still kinda smell it. They all looked at the 'treats' in disgust.

"What in the world did she do…?" Alexis muttered.

"I've never seen someone _this_ bad at cooking…" Jaden almost gagged.

Angelica picked one up, inspecting it closely. It left the rest confused. All of a sudden, she burst out laughing, throwing the cookie back in the box, "You have…got to be k-kidding me!" She said in between her fits of laughter, " _That's_ her attempt at making mint chocolate chip cookies?! What was Khartai thinking?!"

Everyone stood silent, before they began laughing as well. Angelica's laugh really was contagious.

"Well _that_ explains the green color!" Bastion laughed.

"So that other smell was mint!" Jaden added, "How could someone mess up _this_ bad?!"

Aster shook his head, before throwing the cookies in a nearby trash, "Even if they were made properly, I still wouldn't eat them. I think Khartai should just drop it, there's no way I'm gonna be with her anytime soon." He snaked an arm around Angelica's waist. She blushed and giggled. Then her mind went back to the note. She took the crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket.

"She mentioned than there'll be more presents…" Angelica sighed, throwing the note in the trash.

Aster groaned, "She can at _least_ stop the cooking."

"Hm…" The girl was thinking about something, "I could bake some cookies myself~ Don't worry, I've cooked before, so I know what I'm doing~" she smiled.

Aster smiled as well, "I like the sound of that."

"Can we have some?" Jesse asked eagerly.

Angelica rolled her eyes, "Sure. Everyone can have one."

"Heck yeah!" Jaden exclaimed. The rest smiled. Hey, it wasn't everyday you'd get free cookies.

"Better get going then." Angelica went off, with Aster right beside her, holding hands.

Jesse looked at the happy couple, 'Man, I'm pretty jealous…'

"Those two are lucky…" Chazz muttered, though it was loud enough for everyone else to hear.

"Why? Because they're dating while you're still a single potato?" Atticus teased.

"SHUT UP!"

* * *

*Few minutes later*

The two were walking towards the cafeteria, where they'd be able to make the cookies.

 **A/N: Ok I know this is probably gonna cause confusion, but stay with me. You can call this the kitchen, food storage area…place…thing, or something else. I just called it the cafeteria, cause it makes the most sense to me. I didn't really have the time or patience to look if there is an area in Duel Academy where a place like this exists so we're sticking with it!**

It was peaceful, there weren't any other boys running up to Angelica and trying to flirt with her. It was going good so far…well…until a certain _someone_ decided to run in their direction.

"HEY! ASTER!"

Aster winced, "Oh god…is that…?"

"Yup…" Angelica clenched her fist.

"Khartai…"

The magenta haired girl stopped to catch her breath, beaming at them, "Hey! You got my gift?"

"Uh…Yeah…I did…" Aster replied slowly, not really sure what to say next.

Khartai giggled, blushing as she did so. Her attention then switched to Angelica. Now, she had expected the Obelisk Blue to glare daggers at her, but to her(and Aster's) surprise, she kept her bright smile, "Hey Angelica!"

Angelica was taken aback by her actions, as if nothing had happened between them before. It was very skeptical.

"Why are you talking to me like that?" Angelica deadpanned.

Khartai blinked, "What do you mean?"

Aster was starting to get irritated, "What she means is that you shouldn't be trying to act all nice and innocent. Angelica told me what you said and did to her, and you still have the nerve to talk to me?"

Khartai had a hurt look on her face, "I didn't do anything to her! Why would I? She seems so nice!" She glanced at the other girl, "Did you tell him a lie?"

"I know what I heard, Khartai." Angelica said, "Stop trying to play the victim." She walked up and put a hand on Khartai's shoulder, making her twitch. There she saw what was _really_ going on inside.

Khartai had planned to pretend as if she never threatened Angelica, playing it off as an innocent girl. That way, she'd be able to make her seem like a liar and a tricker. It _would've_ worked, if it wasn't for Aster's trust in Angelica, and the girl having these special abilities.

"Nice try," Angelica grinned, "but you'll have to do better than that. Framing someone as a liar because of an act you put on isn't gonna get you anywhere. Sorry~"

Khartai stepped back, staring at Aster with wide eyes, "Sh-She just read my mind! Isn't that creepy?!"

Aster crossed his arms, looking unimpressed, "I already knew she can do that, and it's really unique. There are many other things that you don't know but I do, so don't try finding something that'll scare me away either."

"B-But…" Khartai stuttered, "Sh-She—y-you!"

"Sorry, I don't speak gibberish."

At that point, the magenta haired girl completely dropped her act, "Don't you get it, Aster?! She's poisoning your mind! What if everything she told you isn't true? For all we know, she can be a prostitute! Or worse! You deserve someone who tells you the truth, who would never keep secrets from you! So just leave her before _she_ leaves _you_!"

For some reason, that pierced through Angelica's heart, 'Leave before I do…'

"I can treat you _much_ better than this brat right here!"

Again, something else that pained her, 'Brat…' Memories we're flooding in again, memories she wished were forgotten.

|That'll teach the little brat a lesson!|

|Why are you such a stupid brat?!|

|YOU'RE THE ONE WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD YOU LITTLE BRAT!|

Her breathing became quicker, and her heart began beating at an unnatural rate. She felt as if she was going to faint, but she tried to focus. Her hands and legs began trembling.

"Are you listening to me?! What does this _bitch_ have that I don't?!"

That did it.

Aster straight up smacked her in the face, making her fall to the ground. He then crashed his lips against Angelica's. She was surprised for a second, but she kissed back, wrapping her arms around his neck. Her fears were slowly going away, and she wasn't trembling anymore. She had completely forgotten about those memories, and they were left in the dust once more. Khartai just kept staring in disbelief. She was appalled, she was disgusted, she was filled with jealousy and rage.

When the two broke apart, Aster glared at Khartai, still holding Angelica close, "I don't care what you think. And frankly, I don't care what other people might think about us, especially if it's absolute crap! I know who Angelica is, and there's nothing we'd hide from each other! I trust her! Because I love her with all of my heart, and nothing _you_ say is going to change that! I don't care how badly you want me, or how much you hate Angelica, but I'm _never_ going with you! And that's final! Nothing is going to change my mind! So do us a favor and get lost!"

Khartai had a hand over her cheek where Aster had hit her, she seemed on the verge of tears, but she held them back. Instead, her sadness immediately turned to pure hatred. Something inside her had snapped. She didn't care about competition, she didn't care about affection, she didn't care about kindness. She just needed Angelica _gone_ , 'Guess this is what that therapy was for…'

'To keep me from losing my sanity…'

In one move, Khartai began running right towards Angelica, with something in her hands. It looked like a tiny glass vase. Where did she even find something like that?

"DAMN YOU!" She threw the item at full force.

Aster got in front of Angelica, to protect her. He closed his eyes, bracing for impact, and possibly lots of pain.

But nothing happened.

"H-How in the…?"

When the boy opened his eyes, he was also kinda surprised. But then again, what was he to expect?

Angelica wasn't completely human after all.

The small object was floating in mid-air. Angelica stepped in front, bangs covering her eyes. She raised her hand, and when she formed a fist, the glass item shattered. Khartai had a look of terror, she whimpered and stepped back, "W-What the hell are you?!"

The girl didn't answer the question, instead, she appeared right in front of Khartai, grabbing her by the shirt, as a dark aura was visible.

When Angelica showed her eyes, they were dead and lifeless. But what made Khartai even more horrified was the fact that one of her eyes wasn't even normal in any way. It was a demon eye, something she had never seen before.

Angelica stared right into those scared purple eyes, "I want you to leave right now. And if you tell _anyone_ about what happened here, I'm gonna do to you _exactly_ what I did to that tiny vase. So unless you have a death wish, do what Aster said…and **GET LOST!** "

Khartai desperately nodded, breaking free from her grip, and running like there was no tomorrow. Aster stood there, hesitantly walking towards the girl, "Angelica…?"

She turned around, her eye back to normal, as she gave a cute smile, "Sorry if I scared you, Aster."

"N-No it's fine." He blushed, which made Angelica giggle.

"Now let's go make some cookies!" She grabbed Aster's hand and pulled him towards the cafeteria again.

"Do you even know where to go?"

"Of course I do!"

* * *

*Kitchen Area*

One of the lunch ladies allowed them to use the kitchen to bake. So they thanked her, and went to work. Angelica was actually having a lot of fun, it had been a while since she made treats for people. Aster was new to the whole 'recipe' thing, but if he was able to cook with his girlfriend, there would be no complaints. Though, it was a pretty messy job. That's if you aren't careful.

"Aster! Pass me the butter!"

"On it!"

It was starting to smell really good in the room. Angelica somehow managed to get dough on her face while mixing, but she didn't notice. When Aster had seen it, he chuckled. The girl looked at him confused, "What is it?"

"You have some cookie dough on your face."

She tried wiping it off her cheek, "Did I get it?"

He shook his head. After trying to get it off, she sighed and was about to go grab a napkin, but Aster stopped her, "Let me see."

He leaned in and licked the dough off Angelica's cheek, making her face turn bright red. He then smiled at her, "Minty~"

Angelica pouted, "I-I haven't even added the chocolate chunks in yet!"

"It'll be better then~"

She then kissed him, letting their tongues dance in their mouths. They both moaned, and parted so they can breath. Angelica grinned, "It tastes good~"

Aster chuckled, "Doesn't it?"

They continued making the cookies, placing the dough in the trays and putting them in the oven. Angelica then looked at her clothes, "Wow, I got a little messy."

"Worse than me," Aster said, "actually I didn't get anything on me at all."

The girl sighed, "Maybe I was a bit _too_ excited…"

"'A bit' is an understatement."

She pouted again, "I just love baking! It's really fun, and in the end you get some really yummy treats!"

She smiled cutely, "And I _love_ mint~!"

Aster blushed once more, 'Damn! She's too cute for her own good!'

Angelica then went out of the kitchen, "I'll be back! Just need to bring a bowl and other decor! Tell me when the cookies are done!"

"Got it!" The silver haired boy replied, smiling to himself, 'Heh…you'd never be able to believe that someone like her…who loves cooking and has that adorable face, is able to scare people off so easily…'

'How does she do it?'

He was thinking of asking Angelica if she was okay after their encounter with Khartai. But she seemed really cheerful. It didn't look like anything was bothering her. In fact, it was as if nothing had happened. But when Khartai had called her a brat, she froze up, not doing or saying anything. So it _must_ have affected her _somehow_. If it did, then she just refused to show it, 'Maybe I'm overthinking everything…if it was seriously bothering her…then she would've said something about it…'

'Oh well…'

Angelica then came in, "Here we go!" She was holding a green bowl, with parchment paper covering the inside, "I think this is big enough!" She put the bowl on a nearby counter, while taking something out of her pocket, "Oh, and I have these!"

They were small pieces of chocolate, with white filling on the inside.

Aster looked at them curiously, "What kind of chocolate it this?"

"Mint chocolate of course!"

They both took one and popped them in their mouths. The girl had a look of pure content, "Mmmm~"

"They're really good." Aster said after chewing. Angelica nodded.

"They are!"

An idea formed in the boy's mind. He grabbed the last one, putting it in his mouth, but not biting down. Instead, he pulled Angelica into a kiss, letting the chocolate fall into her mouth. She moaned as they played with the little treat in their mouths, until it was completely gone. Aster then let his tongue roam around the inside of Angelica's mouth, tasting the chocolate that was left over inside. She shivered in delight, gripping onto the other's shoulders. When the need for oxygen became too great, they pulled away, leaving thin trail of saliva. Aster smirked, "Now _that_ was good~"

Angelica blushed greatly, "Y-Yeah…"

Her attention was brought to the cookies that were still in the oven, "The cookies should be done by now!"

Sure enough, they were. And they looked _delicious_. They were _much_ better than the ones Khartai made, that's for sure. The smell was a mixture of chocolate and mint, the perfect combination. So the cookies were put in the bowl, ready to be served. But first…

"Aster…I think I should change…" Angelica giggled, looking at her clothes, which were covered with sugar, melted chocolate, and left over dough that might have accidentally got there. Said boy chuckled.

"You really should. Let's go."

* * *

*Ra Yellow Dorms*

Angelica had brought the bowl of cookies and put them on a small table before picking out another uniform for her to wear. She went to the bathroom to go change, leaving Aster to wait once more on the bed. He didn't really have anything to do at the moment, so he kinda just stared at nothing. But while he was looking around the room, he noticed that Angelica had dropped her jacket, which was something she would most likely refuse to leave without. He picked it up, forgetting exactly what the girl was doing at the moment, and went to the bathroom.

He couldn't hear anything through the door, so he assumed nothing was happening. Since it was unlocked, he opened the door, "Angelica, you dropped your—!"

He immediately stopped mid-sentence when realized Angelica was in the middle of changing, half naked, with just her undergarments on. Her pale skin was gleaming somewhat, and her body looked beautiful. They both blushed furiously.

"I-I-I'm sorry! I j-just came to give you your jacket! I-I'll be going now!" Aster dropped the jacket, leaving and closing the door. He was _not_ one to invade on a girl's privacy like that. He'd never walked in on someone in the middle of changing. That was new.

He took many deep breaths to try and compose himself, 'Okay…calm down, it's nothing serious, it was just an accident, nothing _bad_ …she wasn't _completely_ naked…calm down…' but he then looked down and saw that…

'Crap! Why now of all times?!'

He went back to the bed, trying to figure out a way to fix his…problem, but then Angelica came back in the room, face still red about the accident.

Too late…

"U-Um…" Aster stuttered. He didn't know what to do, and it was beginning to become painful.

"..."

Angelica managed to understand what was going on, just by looking down at his pants, "You're…uh…"

"S-Sorry…" he turned his face in embarrassment. The girl stood there for a few seconds, debating on what to do, before sighing.

"You can't go out like _that_." She crawled onto the bed, making Aster lay down. Angelica was positioned on top of him, smiling.

"W-What are you doing?"

"Fixing this~"

 **WARNING:** **Short Lemon! Don't like, don't read!(Although I bet half of the people reading aren't gonna care)BUT STILL! You have been warned!**

"B-But…!"

"But what?"

"Um…d-do you…even know what to…?" Aster's face was turning more red every second. This was extremely embarrassing, _and_ he just heard the other say she was gonna _fix_ the situation. How did things escalate like this? They were just making cookies a while ago!

"Relax~ I know what I'm doing~" Angelica unbuckled his belt slowly, so he can have some time to prepare, or process this into his brain.

Had someone ever done this to Aster?

No.

Had he ever imagined someone would do this?

No.

More surprisingly, it was _Angelica_. Everyone thought she was so innocent! If only they could see her now…

"Ah~" Aster couldn't prevent the sound from coming out when he felt Angelica rubbing his clothed erection. The girl had managed to pull down his pants, next was to lose the boxers.

"You okay~?"

"I-I'm fine…" Aster's face was flushed. His heart was pounding like crazy, but he put on a smile, "Just…haven't…you know…"

Angelica chuckled, "I know."

Truth be told, she was nervous as well. She knew how to please men, but she hadn't _actually_ done it. So it was pretty new for her, too. The reason she _was_ gonna do it right _now_ was because everyone else wouldn't want to see Aster getting a boner. That would be a complete disaster. So this was the quickest way to give his body what it wants.

She leaned down and kissed him passionately, as she swiftly pulled down the boxers. Aster gasped when he felt the cold air reach his skin. As Angelica inserted her tongue inside, they battled for dominance. This time, she had won, exploring the inside of the boy's mouth. Then, she had started stroking his exposed member, quickening her pace slowly but surely.

"God…Angelica~" Aster moaned, as waves of pleasure swept throughout his body. Said girl smiled, she was doing something right. Her movements became firmer, making the other moan louder.

Suddenly, she stopped, which made Aster whine. She kissed him once more before moving down, taking his member in her own mouth. This made him moan almost to the point of screaming. She proceeded to suck on it, swirling her tongue on the sides, and bobbing her head.

"Ah~! So good~!" Aster was consumed by the lust and pleasure that didn't let him think properly. His mind was a hazy mess. It wasn't everyday he'd be this openly needy, but it wasn't a bad thing either, 'How is Angelica this good?!'

After a while, Aster felt himself at his peak, "A-Angelica~! I-I'm gonna—AH~!" He almost yelled as he arched his back and came into the girl's mouth. She swallowed up everything, smiling at him. He slumped back down in exhaustion. That was one hell of an experience.

 **OKAY SAFE TO READ NOW!(Told you it was short. The full lemon isn't gonna be here just** _ **yet**_ **) Did anyone even read my warning?XD Sorry if it was bad…I'll explain at the end of the chapter…**

"How was it~?"

Aster couldn't answer straight away. He was panting, still trying to catch his breath, and with a flustered look, "It was…great…"

Angelica couldn't help but giggle, "I'm glad." She sat beside and kissed him, "You should clean yourself up before we go."

"Will do." Aster went to the bathroom. Angelica smiled to herself, perfectly content and happy, 'I knew he wouldn't be able to control himself…it wasn't a bad thing really…it was actually kinda…funny…and cute…'

She looked at her bedsheets, 'I'll have to wash those later…'

Aster came out a few minutes later, "Ready to go?"

"Yup!" Angelica grabbed the bowl of cookies and walked out the door with her boyfriend. Some of the girls they passed by immediately ran away with embarrassed looks, but it was only the ones who were the closest to the room. The other rooms were either empty or shut tight. Aster sighed as he too felt slightly nervous. They just hoped people wouldn't complain to the Chancellor.

* * *

*Slifer Red Dorms*

"We're back!" Angelica opened the door, bowl in hand. Everyone's eyes lit up, as they could see the cookies from where they were sitting.

"Yay!" Jaden cheered.

"I was craving some cookies already!" Jesse exclaimed.

Angelica scanned the room, and was surprised to find Syrus sitting on the floor, "Hey, when did you get here?"

"A while ago," he answered, "I just left to clear my head. So I came back and told everyone that everything was alright."

The girl smiled, "That's nice! You can have some cookies, too!"

He became excited, and jumped up, "Really? What kind?"

"Mint Chocolate Chip!"

Angelica placed the bowl on the small table in the middle, "Dig in!"

Jaden and Jesse eagerly grabbed a cookie and took their bites, "This is amazing!"

One by one, they all took one, complimenting how delicious it tasted. Jaden's cookie had some melted chocolate, so when he bit into it, a bit got on his upper lip. Jesse snickered, "Jay, you got some chocolate on your mouth."

The brunette wiped it off and licked it off his finger happily, "Still tastes good!"

Alexis noticed how Angelica hadn't taken a cookie, "You don't want one? Or did you already get one beforehand?"

Angelica giggled, "I already had something earlier~" She smiled innocently, making Aster turn red. He looked away, hoping no one would notice.

'She seriously said that?!'

Atticus noticed this, and being the person that he is, he went and took Aster into a playful headlock, "Does she mean what I think she means~?" He whispered.

"I d-don't know what you're talking a-about…" Aster stuttered.

"Aw c'mon. I'm not that clueless." Atticus snickered, "You don't have to admit it, I just wanted to be sure~" He walked away, leaving the silver haired boy dazed, and a bit confused.

'Why is he such a pervert…?' Angelica rolled her eyes.

Chazz smirked while eating his cookie, "Now these are a hundred times better than the ones that annoying Khartai made."

Angelica flinched at the mention of her.

Hassleberry nodded, "I agree. That girl had _no_ skill."

Aster quietly scowled. Khartai was the last person he wanted to hear about.

One memory came back to Angelica of what she had told them…

Something that had hurt her more than she thought…

|So just leave her before _she_ leaves _you_!|

It kept repeating in her mind…taunting her…

That's the thing. There'd be a likely chance that she'd outlive Aster, for whatever reason that may be, and even if they do manage to perish at the same age…there's a close to zero chance that they'll ever see each other again. Angelica's just going to be reborn five thousand years later…so what difference would it make? She'd have to leave… and they'd never be reunited. The memory of the boy would always stay with her, but no matter how badly she'd want him back…it just wouldn't be possible…

'But I can't force myself to _forget_ someone I _love_!' She mentally yelled, 'He's irreplaceable! I would never be able to get over it! To get over _him_! I don't want to leave him! He means so much to me…there's no one else that can take his place! I can't…I can't go without Aster! But what am I supposed to—?!'

"Hey…Angelica…"

She snapped out of her thoughts, feeling Aster put an arm around her shoulders and pull her closer, "What's the matter…? Was it Khartai…?"

"Aster…" Angelica bit her lip, fighting back the tears that were threatening to flow.

Everyone had stopped, becoming equally concerned. Axel glared at Chazz and Hassleberry, with a 'You guys are complete idiots' look.

"Did you two run into Khartai?" Alexis asked.

Aster nodded, "She came to try and convince me to ditch Angelica. I shoved her off, she went berserk and tried to kill her, and…"

"I made her run away." Angelica finished, "But don't ask how."

Jaden frowned, "What did she tell you?"

"I…" Angelica looked down, "I really don't want to repeat it. Some of the things she blurted out…made me think of stuff I didn't want to be reminded of…"

"Sorry for bringing her up…" Hassleberry apologized. Chazz nodded in agreement.

"It's fine…"

Aster still wasn't convinced. The girl still looked mildly uncomfortable. So something that Khartai said _had_ affected her, and not in a good way. But if he said more, than it would've made her reaction worse. So he saved the questions for later.

Jesse pondered for a bit, wanting to bring up the mood. Then he got an idea, "Hey! I wanna take a shot at beatin' yah in a duel!"

Angelica chuckled, "Is that so? Well you've got yourself a duel then!"

"My Crystal Beasts are gonna pummel you!"

"This is gonna be awesome!" Jaden exclaimed.

They were gonna duel, and forget about Khartai. They were gonna have fun. Nothing else could possibly happen…right?

Wrong.

They all walked out the room, well almost all of them. Angelica stopped mid-way through the door, eyes wide.

Something had stopped her.

Well…more like _someone_.

Everyone looked back in confusion. Aster looked worried, "Why'd you stop?"

Angelica didn't answer, because a certain demon was laughing in her mind.

||Before you go have fun…I need to leave your body for a while. Your sorrow and fear has given me enough power to separate from you, but only for about twenty minutes. That's plenty of time…||

'No…last time this happened…'

"Don't you d—!" She was cut off when she let out a scream of agony. A large pain shot through her heart and body. She clutched at her chest, screaming as the pain continued to come.

"Angelica!" Aster exclaimed, grabbing onto her, "What's happening?!"

"It's…Korísatanikí…" Angelica managed to say, "She's…she's going to—!" She screamed again.

It hadn't been this painful last time…the demon was really forcing it…

Last time wasn't for long, probably only for a minute. But that wasn't intentional. This time…it is.

It felt like her whole body was on fire, and her heart was aching with twice the pain. Of course it'd hurt this much, her darker half was forcefully tearing herself apart from her body.

A large sweep of dark energy made everyone fall off their feet. A dark aura began radiating, as the shadow formed a monster with glowing red eyes. Then, the shadow flew away, but it was too fast for anyone to follow it. Besides, they had other things to worry about.

"Look!"

Angelica collapsed on the floor. She was out cold.

"ANGELICA!" Aster ran to her side, and began frantically shaking her, "Hey! Come on, pull yourself together! Wake up!"

He checked her pulse, and sighed in relief. She was still alive.

"Is she okay?!" Jaden and Jesse asked in unison.

"She's…just unconscious…" Aster said, which made everyone feel a bit more at ease… _a bit_. The silver haired boy carried Angelica bridal style, placing her softly on the couch, "But I don't know for how long…"

He squeezed her hands, silently praying.

"Please…wake up…"

* * *

*Khartai's P.O.V*

I hated her…

I hated her so damn much…

I wanted her to go away…

I wanted her gone…

I wanted her _dead_ …

Now that I think about it…guess this is the reason why my parents kinda avoided me…they thought I'd go and kill them if I was in a bad mood. What the hell did the doctors tell them anyway? That I was a psycho child? Heh…I thought what my mother told me was a joke…

| "You're gonna turn into a sociopath! So go find some friends!" |

Oh well. Guess it's too late for that.

But now I don't care anymore. Aster is _mine_. He belongs with _me_! Not with that _witch_! I can't believe he still loved her after seeing what she did! She's the fucking _devil_!

||Hahahaha…that's right…||

I stood up, and looked around my room. I could've sworn I heard someone laughing…

"Who's there?!"

||Me…|| A black shadow appeared out of absolutely nowhere, ||Hello…Khartai.||

This thing knows who I am?! What's going on today?!

"Wh-What the hell _are_ you?!"

||Does the name… _Korísatanikí_ ring any bells?||

Wait…Angelica mentioned that name…

"How are you connected to that brat?!"

||Hmm…that's not really important now…is it?||

"Then what do you want from me?! Huh?!"

||I just want to make a small… _compromise_ ||

"Compromise…?"

The shadow went closer to me. Hold up…this thing has eyes?!

||It's simple, really. I know you love Aster Phoenix to yourself. I know how badly you want him. But he's already got a girlfriend…Angelica…||

I really hate that it's just reading my love life like some book…

"What about it?!"

It began…laughing again?

||Isn't it obvious? Angelica is not human, as you've already seen. _But_ …there's a way to get rid of an immortal like her…||

Immortal?! You've got to be kidding me! I thought those were just some stupid myths!

||I don't have time to explain everything about immortals. Long story short, they can't die under normal human circumstances. So nothing _you'd_ do would kill her.||

No way…it's already suggesting I kill her. Well…not that I'm really complaining.

||You see…I need Angelica and Aster to be separated, in order to… _complete_ something I've been working on for some time. So, I'm proposing we work together.||

What am I getting myself into?! I can't just pair up with some monster that randomly came from space! But…

||Think through this…I'll help you get Aster, you'd kill Angelica… _and_ I'd be able to finish my little project. We both win.||

This offer…it's not bad at all…I think this will work out perfectly…

||Although…there's one thing I must ask from you…and it's not pretty.||

What?! Oh great! We got conditions now!

||I need you to give up your humanity…||

I almost lost my balance, taking a step back to keep myself from falling, "Give up my humanity?!"

What's that supposed to mean?! That I won't be human anymore?! That I'll become some shadow like it?! How can I even do that?!

||Easy…I can transform you into a demon…just like me. Someone filled with darkness. But for you…I'll make a _special exception_. You'll be like a vessel for me, temporarily of course. I can't manifest into a solid body just yet, I don't have enough power and strength to do that. So, when I can, I'll go into yours, granting you a portion of my abilities…which should be very helpful when trying to fight Angelica.||

Demon? Darkness? Vessel? Abilities? Jesus Christ, this isn't getting any better!

"Will…will I be able to turn back to human?!"

||Unfortunately…no. My power is only to give darkness and turn people's negativity into strength.||

That means…whatever I choose is gonna affect me for the rest of my life! That's totally crazy! I don't want to turn into some creepy ass demon!

||Won't you do _anything_ to make Aster yours? I thought you completely depended on him ever since you two bumped into one another?||

That's right…I've been going after him from the very start. I've been hoping and following him all the way to Duel Academy! It was all because…

||So? Do we have a deal?!||

I know it's stupid, I know I'm being an idiot for trusting a monster…but I don't care! If I can make Aster mine, if I can get rid of that bitch Angelica…it'll be all worth it! Angelica…I'll kill her!

…

"You've got yourself a deal…Korísatanikí."

* * *

/ _Local maniac_ /

/ _Sick bitch, psychopath_ /

/ _Yeah I'm gonna show you, I'm gonna show you_ /

/ _Yeah I'm gonna show you_ /

/ _Mental, out of my brain_ /

/ _Bad shit, going insane_ /

/ _Yeah I'm gonna show you, I'm gonna show you/_

/ _Yeah I'm gonna show you_ /

— "I'm Gonna Show You Crazy" by Bebe Rexha

* * *

*Author's Note*

Yay! Chapter 13! Honestly I didn't think this story would be this long!

Okay…and about the lemon…

I have a little something to say, why it's probably bad to some people.

Angelica: I'm listening.

Korísatanikí: Let's see if this is good.

Well…I have a confession to make…

…I'm only in middle school.

Everyone: 0_0

D-Don't give me that look!

Jaden: Wow, you write stuff like _that_ and you're only like, what? Twelve? Thirteen?

Jesse: Where'd you learn that stuff anyway?

DON'T FRICKIN ASK OKAY?!

Everyone: …uh…

God dammit I knew this was gonna happen.

I know that I'm…young in a sense…but I'll try! I promise to try!

Anyway…Happy late New Years! It's been three days…or four I don't know. I recently moved, like in September, so it was cool to see some of the people near our block showing off their fireworks. Oh and the time I'm posting this it's past midnight. Lol school is gonna be back in a few days and I'm here staying up late. Meh. I believe Khartai just went full on yandere mode, and Korísatanikí just made it even worse. Great…

Thank you so much presea221 for all your support!

Byyyeeee!


	15. Chapter 14

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 14**

Me: Noooooooo! Schooooll!

Angelica: Cheer up! School isn't that bad!

Me: Easy for you to say…YOU DON'T LIVE IN MY WORLD!

Korísatanikí: And I wish I never have to.

Me: Shut up… _skyla_ ~

Korísatanikí: OH YOU'RE SO DEAD!

Aster: What did she say?

Jaden: Sounds like a girl's name, doesn't it?

Jesse: Don't like being called a girly-girl demon~?

Korísatanikí: I WILL BANISH YOU TO HELL AND BURN YOU ALIVE!

0_0'

Angelica: Can you refrain from cursing?

Me: I didn't curse!

Angelica: Saying cuss words in another language doesn't mean you get away with it.

Aster, Jaden & Jesse: Wait she cursed?!

…Well worth a shot!

I don't own anything, except Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, Khartai, and Taylor.

(Wasn't that shorter?)

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

I don't write in a certain person's point of view too often, so I tried a few times, and it's not _bad_ , but not the best. Don't hate me.

Also, this chapter is mostly going to develop on everyone's relationship with each other. Maybe a little fluff here and there…

Let's do this! Chapter 14!

* * *

/ _Welcome to the panic room!_ /

/ _Where all your darkest fears are gonna come for you_ /

/ _Come for you._ /

/ _Welcome to the panic room!_ /

/ _You'll know I wasn't joking when you see them too, see them too._ /

/ _Welcome to the panic room!_ /

— "Panic Room" by Au/Ra

* * *

*Angelica's P.O.V.*

What happened?

Why am I here?

Last thing I remember…

…Oh no.

Korísatanikí. She left my body. Now I've been knocked out cause of the pain. Why though? Why now? What could she possibly do at this point? All I can see…is darkness. Everything's empty.

I start running forwards, hoping to find something in this oblivion. When what seemed like years passed by, there was something, it looked like an opening. Hopeful, I ran straight towards it. But…once I reached the end…I wish I hadn't gone there.

Khartai was standing there, looking extremely hesitant and nervous. From the angle I could see her in, I must be viewing from Korísatanikí's eyes. What were they saying? I could see Khartai's mouth move, but no sound coming out. Suddenly, she nodded, and the opening I was looking through was enveloped in dark shadows.

||I see you found your way here.||

I tried yelling, but no words left my throat. I covered my mouth. I couldn't speak?!

||Sorry, but I really don't want to listen to your whining right now. Anyway, let me give you some advice.||

I didn't want to listen, so I glared and turned my head away. Her body appeared before me, tail and everything. She grabbed my chin, forcing me to look straight at her blood red demon eyes. What does she want to tell me this time?

||I'd suggest you give up on Aster Phoenix. Someone's already going after him, and she's not going to stop. So you're gonna have to break up. No hard feelings.||

What the hell?! She's gotta be joking! I would never leave Aster just cause of Khartai!

Hold on…Korísatanikí is helping her?! What's up with that?! Why does she want Aster gone so badly?! Is it so I can turn to the dark side? So I can become a demon with pure hatred?

She leaned closer to my face.

||I'm doing you a favor. If you get it over with now, you won't have to be even more heartbroken in the future. It's bad enough as it is, why make it harder for you?||

Doing me a favor? Oh please! If she wanted to do me a favor, then she would've rebelled against a task that my father wanted to be completed! I don't want to leave Aster, but then what's gonna happen to Korísatanikí? I can't abandon her either! Why do I have to choose? Sure, this demon has done many cruel things…much more than I can count. Sure she's been ruining parts of my life. But…all things considered…I'd be nothing without her! I would've never shaken off my adopted parents! She's a part of me, my other side! The other half of my soul!

||What? Are you not going to leave Aster?||

No! I can't! I won't! Aster also means so much to me! I love him! With every part of my being! With my life! Nobody would be able to take his place. No one. I'd be nothing without him either. He saved me. He saved me from myself! He showed me love like no one else could. I don't want to lose him!

…I had just realized it, but I was crying. My body was shaking. I fell to my knees, feeling too weak to stand up. Not only was I pressured with what Korísatanikí said, but I was still unconscious in the real world, I didn't have much strength. I wanted comfort, I wanted affection. But of course, there was no one here except for my demon counterpart. I felt alone again. I felt helpless…

||You know…for the many years that I've been with you, I've learned a lot of things. Yes, I've ruined parts of your life on this Earth, but overtime…I've felt things. And no, not just excitement.||

I didn't move. Suddenly, I felt…arms? They felt kinda rough and scaly of sorts. I was pulled towards Korísatanikí's body in a hug. Why was she hugging me?! I had not expected this. I was shocked, but that was quickly drowned with sadness and fear again. I sobbed onto her shoulder.

||I felt…a sort of pain. Like a small voice telling me what I was doing was wrong. But everytime, that would be covered up with my bloodlust, and my urge to kill. For a long time, I never knew what this was. But…I think I know now…||

I nodded, signaling her to continue.

||...Guilt. I'm your darker half, isn't my job to make you a shadow as well? That's what I'm always telling myself, because that's the truth. But something deep inside keeps telling me otherwise. I've learned to ignore it, to bury it. Though…I do wonder…what exactly is the purpose of doing what I do?||

My eyes widened. She's been doubting this? Is she breaking free? Fighting against my father's will?

She let go of me, walking away, and disappearing into the darkness.

||But I can't dwell on this. I've got more things to worry about, I just thought I'd let you know about this right now.. I meant what I said earlier, you should give up on your boyfriend. It would be for the best.||

With that, I was alone again. I sat there dumbfounded, confused on where to start. There were so many things happening at once.

"...ca!"

"...lica!"

"...ngelica!"

Is someone calling me?

"Angelica!"

It sounds like…Aster!

* * *

*Slifer Red Dorms*

*Normal P.O.V.*

Aster was shaking the girl, "Hey! Angelica! Are you okay?!"

Everyone gathered around, hoping for the best. When they heard Angelica shaking, and twisting in her unconscious state, it caused them to panic. But it also meant that she was waking up, so there was a bright side to this.

Angelica opened her eyes, meeting cobalt blue ones, "...Aster…?"

Said boy was washed with happiness. He embraced Angelica tightly, "Thank god! I was worried to death!"

Jesse sighed in relief, "We were all worried. You straight up fell unconscious, and we didn't know when you'd wake up."

Jaden nodded, "You really scared us."

Angelica weakly laughed, hugging Aster back, "Sorry. How long was I out…?"

"About an hour or so…"

"Really…?" Angelica tried sitting up, but she got a splitting headache, so Aster laid her back down on the couch.

"You shouldn't push it. Just rest for a while more." He smiled, "Don't worry, we won't force you to do anything."

The girl thought for a moment, before smiling back, "If you say so."

"I'll go get some water." Aster said, leaving the room.

When Angelica layed back down, she had remembered why she was like this to begin with, and what happened in her mind. She clutched her black necklace. Korísatanikí still wasn't back. And considering the situation, she was likely still with Khartai. It was a high possibility.

"Dammit…" She muttered under her breath. Jaden and Jesse managed to catch that, though they were a bit surprised at the frustration in her voice.

"What's up?" Jaden asked.

Angelica sighed, "I know why Korísatanikí wanted to leave. She's been talking to Khartai. And that's not good."

"Wait, but why?"

"..." She put an arm over her eyes, "Khartai's her best bet into building a wall between me and Aster,

making sure we're separated. If they're able to pull that off, then they'd both get what they want. Khartai would possibly have Aster all to herself, and Korísatanikí would have completely broken me. At times like this, I seriously hate her…"

"Can't say I blame you," Alexis replied, "because from what I've heard of your demon half, she's bit crazy"

Angelica rolled her eyes, " _A bit crazy_ is not even close. She's a full blown psychopath."

"And so is Khartai…" Aster came in with a cup of water, "She totally snapped, and may I remind you that she tried killing Angelica with a glass vase? Nobody in their right mind would do that somewhere public like Duel Academy. Anyone could've seen that, and she would've been taking the next boat out of here."

"Then why can't we just tell Chancellor Sheppard?!" Syrus exclaimed.

"You really think it would be that easy?" Axel pointed out, "Think about it. Khartai has a supernatural being working with her, they definitely aren't dumb enough to let some expulsion rule get the better of them."

"He's right, you know," Jim nodded, "If the whole academy ends up finding out about this, it'll be a total mess of panic."

"The things you see on this island…" Chazz muttered.

Angelica thanked Aster for the glass of water, slowly drinking it. She then placed it on the table, "There's not much we can do. I can't go searching and find out what Korísatanikí was talking about with Khartai, nor do I know where they are now…" She sat up, "But from what my demon half was telling me while I was unconscious, she's likely turning the girl into a demon, too."

"She was talking to you?" Aster asked, "What about?"

"About what she's been wanting me to do for days…" Angelica looked down, "Push you away. To forget about you, all so that I can become a heartless monster."

"Because of…" Aster hesitated. The other just nodded in return. There was a moment of silence, before Jaden groaned.

"Man…this sucks…" He then thought of something, "Hold on…how is that demon even able to leave your body?"

"Like I've said before," Angelica explained, "she was born because of my built up anger and sorrow. So many years have passed by after that, so now she's able to leave, but not permanently. After a while, her energy would drain, so she'd have to return eventually."

"How long would that be?"

She shrugged, "Depends. Right now…I believe for a few hours…so she would be returning in half an hour or so."

Atticus frowned, "Let's just hope Khartai is sane enough to not do anything _stupid_."

"And is she _does_ manage to become a monster," Hassleberry made a fist, "we'll take her down."

"You got that right." Chazz joined in, "They messed with the wrong people."

Bastion smirked, "This would be the perfect time to try out new decks…"

"We'll show that we're not afraid them!" Alexis said.

"Alright!" Jesse exclaimed.

Aster nodded. Angelica looked around the room with a grateful smile, "You guys are the best…seriously."

Syrus smiled back, "What are friends for?"

The silver haired boy held Angelica's hand, "You're not doing this alone. We're all helping you, and we're not stopping until they're beaten!"

"Yeah!"

* * *

*Jaden's Room*

They had all decided to do their own thing until Angelica called them. That meant either Korísatanikí was back, or she found Khartai. Once they got the call, they'd all rush over to where she was, and face whatever they had to. So, Jaden was sitting in his small desk, looking at the various cards in his deck. You never know when he'd need to duel.

When everyone was pumped up, claiming they'd take down the demons, he felt uneasy. It was bad enough with just Korísatanikí, but now she's got new friends to help her. Who knows how strong they are? Who knows what tricks they might pull? They can practically do anything by this point. It wasn't that he didn't believe in his friends, he did, but he didn't want them getting hurt. There are so many things that can go wrong, the possibilities are almost endless. He's been trying to look on the bright side, trying to stay positive and believe that everything would be okay, but that's hard to do with their current situation.

Jaden was so stressed, he couldn't even concentrate on his cards. He let out a large groan, putting his hands over his face. Of course, a demon that's a descendant of the Lord of the Underworld himself is capable of _anything_. All the memories of Angelica's stories, the zero hesitation, the brutal murders, it made him sick to his stomach to know that those could happen to his friends. Yubel appeared beside the brunette.

||You're really worried, aren't you?||

"Why wouldn't I be?!" He shot back, making the spirit wince, "My friends could be _killed_! We're dealing with something from _hell_ of all things! What if something happens to them?! What if they're taken away?! What if…" He stopped for a moment, his eyes welling up with tears, "What if…I can't help them…and…" His voice trailed off.

||I…||

Jaden sighed, clearing his throat, "Sorry I yelled at you…"

||No, it's fine. I understand.||

"It's just…I don't know what could happen. I don't want what happened last time to happen again…"

||I see…||

Yubel decided to leave, letting Jaden think to himself.

'There are so many things that can go wrong…I can't lose anyone…not again.' His mind began drifting to someone else in particular.

'It's always Jesse, huh? I can't help it…I always feel so lost without him. When he was left in the other dimension, I was so…miserable. Every second hurt…'

Nothing had hurt him more, than losing one of the person he cared about most. What it going to happen this time…?

Jaden laid on his bed, grabbing the pillow and clutching it, "Please…I don't want him to go…not again…"

The door opened.

"Jay? What's the matter?"

Jaden was facing the wall, but he didn't turn around, because he didn't want to face the person, "I'm fine, Jess. Just kinda bummed out…I guess."

"It's about the whole demon thing, isn't it?"

How did he always manage to know what he was thinking? "Yeah…"

"C'mon! We'll beat 'em like we did before!" Jesse exclaimed, "Once we do, we can put this all behind us! And everything will go back to the way it was!"

"I wish…"

He frowned, "Jay, tell me straight up. What's really goin' on in that head of yours?"

The other boy didn't answer, he just tightened his grip on the pillow.

Jesse grabbed his shoulder, "Jaden, look at me, and answer me. No lying."

His breath hitched when the brunette turned around, showing his chocolate colored eyes that were already wet with tears.

Jaden let go of the pillow, and sat up, "I…I'm scared…" He began trembling, "I'm scared…that everyone's gonna get h-hurt. We don't know what'll happen…what if they decide to kill everyone…? What if…th-there's nothing we can do…?"

Jesse felt his heart ache more with every word that left the boy's mouth. Ever since the incident, he's always been like this, fearing that his nightmares would become a reality.

"I don't want to lose everyone again…and…" Jaden didn't think, "I can't stand the thought of losing you!"

He broke down, letting it go. He embraced his best friend tightly, afraid that he'd just disappear. The brunette sobbed in the other's shoulder.

"I-I-If you ever died…I…I would n-never be able to forgive myself!" He cried, "I already l-lost you once, I don't w-want it to happen this t-time either!"

"Jaden…" Jesse mumbled. He inhaled a shaky breath, wrapping his arms around Jaden, "I promise…that won't happen…not now…not ever…" He blinked back his own tears. His friend had cared _this_ about him, to know that, it made him feel full.

'Jaden…he…really doesn't want me to leave him, like I did last time. It hurt him that much? I guess…I never thought of it, he was always telling everyone he was alright. I've got to hand it to him, he's _way_ too good at acting.'

"Listen to me…" Jesse whispered, "We're gonna beat Korísatanikí and her group together, 'kay?With the help of all our friends, we'll do it. But you need to believe in them…you need to believe in me…can you do that?"

Jaden nodded, his sobs dying down to only sniffles, "Yeah…we…we can do this…"

They pulled apart a little, Jaden put on his smile back.

Jesse couldn't help but smile as well, "There yah go. Whatever those demons might throw at us, we'll pull through like we always do!"

"You're right. Thanks, Jesse."

"Hey, I'm not your best friend for nothin'!"

For some reason, Jaden felt a bit pained at the comment, 'Why did that hurt…?'

The two boys then noticed how close they were, again. This made both blush.

"Uh…"

Before one of them could spit out something awkward, they were saved by their duel callers ringing.

 **A/U: Still don't know what those things are called…_**

It was a recording from Angelica, "Everyone! Aster and I saw Khartai! She's heading towards the Obelisk Blue Dorms! Alexis, Atticus, update us if you see her do anything before we get there!" The recording ended.

Jesse sighed, "That's our que. You ready, Jay?"

Jaden nodded, grabbing his deck and duel disk.

"Time to get our game on!"

* * *

*Earlier*

*Chazz's Room*

 **A/U: These next few scenes are all happening at the same time, but in different parts. Just wanted to clear that up in case anyone was confused. :)**

"Jeez…this year's insane…" Chazz sighed, "Never thought I'd meet demons from hell, but here we are."

Axel nodded, "If I stayed in West Academy, I would've never believed this if you ever told me."

"Same here." Jim agreed.

"Um…" Syrus fidgeted, "Exactly… _how_ powerful is Angelica's darker half?"

"It's hard to measure," Bastion replied, "Jaden told us that Angelica's father is…the Lord of the Underworld…so…"

Syrus sighed, "Nevermind…it's impossible to imagine how powerful that makes someone."

"I don't care what that creature is!" Hassleberry's eyes changed for a second, "I'm tearing her apart!"

"Calm down, dino breath." Syrus rolled his eyes.

Hassleberry growled, "What'd you call me?!"

"Nothing! Nothing!" The smaller boy waved his hands defensively.

"You should really choose better people to fight, Syrus." Chazz remarked, "You might end up being pummeled."

Syrus crossed his arms, "Yeah, yeah."

As they kept talking about certain things, Syrus grew silent. He felt himself stealing glances at Chazz from time to time. That bittersweet feeling was coming back again.

'He's actually really cool…'

'He's so egotistical!'

'I like him…but I hate him for that!'

'Ugh! What are you doing to me?!'

"Hello? Earth to Syrus!"

The boy hadn't noticed he was staring once more, "Y-Yeah?"

"You blanked out again." Chazz scoffed, waving his hand in front of the other's face, "Seriously, why do you keep doing that? I know I'm The Chazz, but now what you're doing is getting kinda weird."

Syrus nervously rubbed the back of his head, "Sorry. Just zoned out, that's all."

"That's all?" The taller one repeated. Syrus just nodded, while the other were sending questioning looks.

"Alright, spill it." Axel said, "Who's on your mind?"

Syrus didn't know how to answer that. It would've been easier just to say Dark Magician Girl, and get away with it, but he didn't really want to. His card crush had been wearing off for some time, and now his new crush was not only a person, he was a _boy_ , _and_ he was one of his friends. How convenient.

"That's for me to know and for you to never find out." He turned away.

"You can't hide it forever, Truesdale." Hassleberry sighed, "Just go on with it."

Syrus groaned, "If I tell you _two_ things about my crush, will you stop bothering me?"

They all nodded. Truth be told, they were curious.

The small boy took a deep breath, "Okay. One, it's not a card." This made everyone a bit relieved on the inside.

"Two…well…" Syrus blushed. He couldn't believe he was about to say this.

"I-I-It's a…b-boy…"

This shocked everyone greatly. Chazz was the first to respond, "Wait, you never said you were bi!"

"That's cause I didn't realize it till now…" Syrus covered his face in embarrassment, 'Way to go! Now they're gonna think you're a freak!'

Everyone grew quiet. The subject went from zero to one hundred real quick. Now they ended up making someone confess something they probably wouldn't have otherwise. This was really surprising, because for a while, Syrus had only seemed interested in girls. But now, he gained a crush on another boy? The conversation escalated so fast, it was hard to say how and why. The tense silence became more and more unbearable with each passing second. Finally, the group decided to break it.

"It's fine, Syrus. We don't mind. You shouldn't be ashamed of your own interests and sexuality" Bastion reassured.

Jim and Axel nodded. Chazz, for whatever reason, patted Syrus on the head.

"Don't get wrapped up on this. Let's be honest, anything is better than you drooling over a duel monster." He smirked when the other boy glared at him.

Hassleberry chuckled, "Just don't go crushing on one of us, Truesdale."

They all couldn't help but laugh, well not Syrus. He just faked it.

'Too late for that…'

Everyone stopped when their duel callers were ringing. And as they listened to the recording sent by Angelica, they knew what was gonna happen next. Axel stood up, the rest following.

"Let's go fight some demons."

* * *

*Earlier*

*Outside*

On days like these, some would be either relaxing in their room without a care in the world, or hanging out with friends at school. That's the life of _normal_ people. But for the special ones at Duel Academy, today was nothing _next_ to normal. In fact, it was the opposite. What happened to them others would think was a joke, but it's not, they know what they've seen. But, compared to everything that had happened in the past, this would be by far the craziest and most unbelievable.

Demons from the Underworld? Daughter of Satan? Who would believe that?

And what would be going on next would drain so much energy, not to mention that their lives could potentially be in danger.

That was what Angelica wanted to avoid.

This is exactly what she didn't want to happen when she came here. To put her friends in a situation that could most likely mean life or death. She knows they've been through that before, but that didn't mean they _asked_ for it to come back. She felt awful, but at the same time, they were helping her because they _wanted_ to. Not for any other reason, but because they were friends. On one hand, it's very heart warming, and Angelica was grateful for their friendship. But on the other hand, it was why they were in danger to begin with. Why they'd intentionally join in a fight they had not been involved in when it started. There were so many ways to think about their current standing point.

A battle was about to begin, that was for sure.

Aster and Angelica knew this.

The couple decided to walk together around the school, mainly for any sign of Khartai or Korísatanikí, but also to enjoy the peace…while it lasts at least. They stopped by somewhere familiar, it was a small pond in the middle of the woods.

"This place…" Angelica smiled, "I remember…it was when I first came here. You, Jaden, and Jesse took me around the academy, and here I wanted to open up."

"Yeah," Aster agreed, "Brings back a lot of memories, you were pretty interested in everything we passed by, and you thought this place was great."

"That's because it is!" The girl walked up to the pond, using her power to make the water float and follow her hand movements, "It's so calm here, and I don't think much people know about it either." She let the water fall back into the pond.

Aster walked up behind Angelica and wrapped his arms around her, "Maybe it's best that people don't find out~"

Angelica giggled, "Why's that?"

"Well…crazy fans wouldn't interrupt us," he pointed out, "and the others who are jealous wouldn't keep bugging."

"True."

They sat down beside the pond, with Angelica sitting on the boy's lap. She nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck, sighing in content. Not long after, her worries began surfacing again.

"Aster…" The other hummed in response, "This is so messed up…I dragged everyone into something they weren't involved in, and now they're facing my demon half. She's so powerful, so much so that if she ever wanted to, she could destroy any city with one go." Aster didn't know how to respond. Angelica kept going.

"I'm afraid…that you'll get hurt…or worse…" She gripped on his shirt. Aster ran his fingers through her hair, while planting a kiss on her forehead.

"Believe me, I've seen Jaden and the rest create miracles time and time again, I'm sure they'll pull through." He said, "Whatever happens out there, just remember that I love you, Angelica."

Said girl smiled, meeting Aster eye to eye, "I love you, too…"

She leaned down and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Aster grabbed Angelica's waist pulling her to the ground, and hovering over her, while their lips still touched. He then slipped his tongue in her mouth, meeting the other one's. As they were having their heated make out session, the boy began caressing Angelica's body, running his hands slowly on her chest, down to her stomach. He put his hand under her shirt, making the other shiver in delight. When they broke the kiss, both their faces were flushed, but Aster went to trailing kisses down her jawline, to her now exposed neck(the scarf was a distraction). He nipped a part of her skin and licked it, causing Angelica to softly moan.

Just as Aster was about to take the her shirt off, Angelica grabbed his wrists, "Wait. Stop."

The sudden change in tone caught him off guard, "What is it?"

She quickly stood up, looking around intently, "Someone's here, I can feel it. There's a dark aura radiating from them, too."

Aster stood up in a defensive position, scanning the trees for any sign of a person.

Magenta hair caught Angelica's attention, along with the Obelisk Blue uniform, "That's…Khartai!"

Aster followed the girl's gaze, and also spotted her walking through the woods, "She's heading towards the blue dorms! It's just around here, too!"

"I'll let everyone know!" She grabbed our her caller, recording a message.

When she finished, they looked at each other and nodded.

They knew what was going to happen next.

And they were prepared.

* * *

*Earlier*

*Atticus's Room*

"So…why are we in _your_ room?"

"Because it's less weird, and we won't get held up by my fans in the girl dorms."

"Whatever…"

"Don't be like that! Now we can have some proper family time!"

"Okay…?"

Sure maybe the older boy was acting a bit full of himself, but he _did_ think a little about it. The boys in the dorm already knew that the two were siblings, plus they didn't want to get mixed up with one of the hottest boys in the academy. At first, there was nothing really to talk about in the room, they kinda just waited for the call Angelica was going to give. There was long silence, apart from the ticking of the clock and an occasional movement from one of them.

"So Lexi…" Atticus decided to strike a conversation, "Have you found anyone special?"

"Seriously? This again?" Alexis sighed in annoyance.

"What?! It's not a crime to wanna know about my little sis's love life!" He put his hands behind his head, and laid back on the couch, "Chazz was a lost cause, you definitely weren't interested in _him_. So who _are_ you interested in?"

Alexis groaned, "No one. Okay?"

"Aw c'mon! Why can't you tell your brother?!"

"Just drop it."

Atticus crosses his arms, thinking for a while. Then he smirked, "How about…Jim?"

That literally came out of nowhere.

"Don't even start making random guesses."

The other laughed, "I know, I know. Besides, it's Jaden you like, right~?"

This made the blonde tense up, "Wh-Why would you say that…?"

"Well…you're always supporting him, he's saved you lots of times, and I've seen your face when Blair gets clingy over him." Atticus smirked, "So, you like him~!"

Alexis couldn't even respond, she just groaned and sat on the bed, "I don't even think it makes a difference."

This time, Atticus didn't make another joke, "Well…I've been noticing a very small change in behavior in Jaden…especially around Jesse…"

Well…he did claim to be an "expert" on everything that has to do with love, guess noticing the signs is part of his "job". Still, it can get pretty creepy. The girl was a little nervous, since what her brother said could mean a lot more than just random behavior…

"Maybe it's something else…?" Alexis said hopefully. A part of her was wishing Jaden didn't have a crush on someone else.

"Maybe…" The older one sighed, "But it's kinda hard to tell with those two, you know how they are. Anyway, not trying to be mean or anything…but I don't think Jaden is interested in you…let alone any girl actually…"

Alexis clenched her fists, this was the third time she heard something really similar, and it was getting very frustrating. Was everyone doing this on purpose or what?

"I get it, okay?! Can people stop rubbing it in my face?!" Atticus jumped at the outburst, and felt a little bad.

"Sorry, sis…"

"Let's not talk about this anymore," the younger of the two looked impatiently at a wall clock, "we've got other things to worry about. Like if Khartai is actually going to show her face sooner or later."

"It's not that simple," her brother frowned, "she's not gonna waltz right up to us."

The subject changed just like that. Alexis was tired of hearing about her not being compatible with Jaden. So what? It was probably a mere friend crush, something that would go away once time went by, or when she actually found someone else. Her crush wasn't _big_ …right?

Well, those thoughts could be saved for later, now there was something more serious going on that they had to pull all their attention towards.

'Those demons sure know how to hide…' Alexis pondered, 'What are they doing…?'

As if to answer that question, her caller rang. She listened to the recording sent by Angelica, and was surprised to hear Khartai was heading towards their direction. What a coincidence.

"We should get going." Atticus stood up.

Alexis nodded, grabbing her duel disk and deck, "Time to fight."

* * *

*Obelisk Blue Dorms(Girls)*

 **A/U: Ok, NOW time is moving forward again! XD**

Alexis and Atticus managed to go inside without being seen. They were now hiding behind a wall, and staring at the entrance, waiting for a girl with magenta hair and dark violet eyes. Since everyone had gotten the call, they would be arriving shortly.

The door opened, and Khartai walked through. But she seemed…different. Something was definitely off. They couldn't get a good look at her face because of the angle they were looking at her from, and her hair covering most of it. She was walking straight forward, as if nothing around her mattered, as if nothing except herself existed. Once she passed the two that were hiding, they came out, making their presence known. Still, Khartai didn't even turn around.

"Where do you think you're going?" Alexis demanded, "You still have the nerve to show up around here?"

She didn't answer.

"Hey! Are you gonna look at us or what?" Atticus yelled.

The rest of the group came in. Aster was again filled with anger at the sight of Khartai, "Why were you talking to a demon?!"

"We want answers!" Jaden shouted, "What are you planning to do?!"

Angelica gasped, putting a hand over her mouth, "No…it can't be…!"

They all turned to her in confusion.

"What? What is it?!" Aster asked anxiously.

Angelica's face turned into a glare, "Skotádi, you really did _that_?!"

"Hold on! Did what exactly?!" Jesse exclaimed.

Khartai let out a dark chuckle, "Why are you so surprised? I thought you knew _everything_ about this freak of nature."

||You seriously went there?||

"Yeah, and?"

||...whatever.||

Angelica clenched her fists, "I can't believe you…"

"What? That I agreed to be like _this_?!" Khartai turned around.

Everyone gasped, except Angelica.

The magenta haired girl had a demon eyes on her left, and a large pentagram surrounding it, with straight, crimson lines. Her neck had markings and words in a different language, completely etched into her skin. Also, on her neck, was a choker, fitted with a black gem in the middle. Her body had dark energy around it, showing she wasn't human. The uniform she wore was had blood splattered almost everywhere, and her wrists were bruised, as if she was restrained.

"Why?!" Angelica exclaimed, "Why'd you agree to something like that?!"

"What…" Syrus whimpered, very intimidated by the appearance, "Wh-What happened to her?!"

"I've never seen anything like this…!" Axel breathed.

"Jesus…!" Chazz muttered, stepping back a bit.

"This is nothing like what happened to me!" Atticus blurted out, "What in the world…?!"

"This is like what happened to Taylor…" Jaden said, "He was turned into a demon, but this time…"

"It's a lot worse…" Jesse finished.

"I don't like to wait," Khartai deadpanned, "but you guys look like you can use an explanation. Little slifer there is right, I was turned into a demon who's home is Hell itself. But…there's a catch. I'm not like the other ones Korísatanikí might have made…"

"And how are _you_ so special?!" Aster yelled.

Angelica answered him, "The ritual is different, it allows her to be more powerful than normal demons. Plus, she can act as a support for their… _igemonída_ , and as a new temporary vessel."

"Vessel?!"

She nodded, "That way, Korísatanikí can be separated from me for much longer, and see things through another person's eyes. But that person will gain a portion of her power, and considering how much that is, it's a big deal."

"What the…?" Hassleberry said.

"Are we done with the explaining now?" Khartai asked impatiently, "I'd like everyone to follow me, we have something _very_ special for you~"

"Why should we trust you?!" Jaden demanded.

||That's easy…||

Korísatanikí's voice echoed through the room.

||I could effortlessly _kill_ everyone on this island right now. I could obliterate this academy, and nobody would ever hear of it again.||

Everyone froze.

||So…if you want to keep this place in tact, I'd suggest you listen to what my friend here says and follow her~ Make sure _all of you_ come~||

"Don't worry~ It's not far~" Khartai snickered, opening up a black portal behind her, "It's just through here! I'll be waiting on the other side~!"

With that, she stepped back into the portal, leaving the group in the room to decide.

"Are we really gonna follow her?!" Chazz exclaimed, "This is obviously a trap!"

"You heard what the demon said!" Syrus replied, "If we don't go, then all of this will be destroyed!"

"Can she even do that?!" Bastion asked.

Angelica sighed, "Of course she can. After all, she has the will of my father on her side. If she said she was gonna do it, then she will."

"But—!"

"There's nothing else we can do." Axel interrupted, "If we don't go with what she says, lots of people here are going to die."

"He's got a point there, pal," Jim fixed his hat, "they've got us backed into a corner, because we can't tell anyone else about this."

Alexis shifted uncomfortably, "So…we're going…?"

"Guess so," Atticus shrugged.

"I still think just marching into enemy territory without knowing what's there is a bad idea," Hassleberry sighed, "but it's the only option."

Angelica looked at the portal with determination, "I need to stop Korísatanikí. Once and for all."

Aster nodded, holding onto her hand, as they began walking towards the portal.

Jaden gulped, knowing that danger lies ahead, and some of his fears were coming back again. A part of him started doubting himself. Jesse sympathetically gazed at the brunette, before grabbing his hand reassuringly, "We can do this."

The boy replied with a nod, gaining back confidence, as they also made their way to the open path.

One after another, they went to the open portal, it's ominous energy sending bad feelings through every one of them, but they didn't stop. There was no turning back now.

As the last of them stepped fully through the portal, it closed almost immediately. Leaving no trace of it.

This was it.

* * *

/ _Still waiting, hands shaking_ /

/ _Maybe the coast will clear_ /

/ _But these voices, these strange noises_ /

/ _They followed me in here_ /

— "Panic Room" by Au/Ra

* * *

 ***Author's Note***

Dun, Dun, Duuunnnnnnnn!

Sorry! Gotta wait till the next chapter!

Trust me, next chapter will be more action, battle(maybe a little…um… _death_ …or not!), and other things In forgetting to mention! Cause I have great memory!(I'm being sarcastic I have _horrible_ memory) The next chapter or so are gonna be _wild_ to write!

Well, hope you enjoy my story!

Thank you as always presea221 for your amazing feedback! It's really appreciated!

Byyyeeee!


	16. Chapter 15

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 15**

I'm alive, people! I didn't get into any freak accident or anything, I'm still here, stressing too much about _everything_ …

This is one intense chapter…that's all I gotta say about it! *sigh* Welp…buckle up because we're going on one hell of a rollercoaster!

I'll try and explain the whole "Taking more than a f**king month to post" thing at the end...

I don't own anything, only my characters(Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, Khartai, and Taylor)

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

" _Italics"_ Quote

/ _Italics_ / Song

 **WARNING: Cursing, explicit gore, and character death :)**

Battle! Chapter 15!

" _You say you've seen hell…"_

" _Well…I say you've only seen a part of it…"_

" _Because guess what…?"_

" _I live in it."_

— Imma be real here I don't know where this came from -_-' Sorry!

—–

*?*

This place…it was like fear and terror itself, something completely out of someone's nightmare. The air felt cold, empty, and tense. Pretty much everything around them was shrouded in darkness, they could barely see a few feet in front of them. The ground was practically gone in their eyes, but it was certainly there, it just camouflaged with the almost pitch black area. The group looked around, thinking if they should be intimidated, curious, or both. They couldn't sense one ounce of life. In fact, the only one who didn't seem fazed was Angelica, as if she was familiar with this alternate dimension. Aster had to squeeze her hand to be sure she was still there.

Chazz couldn't stay silent, "The hell is all to this?"

"G-Guys…" Syrus whimpered, "C-Can we leave…?"

Axel looked behind them, where the portal once was, "We can't go back. All we can do is move forward."

Angelica closed her eyes, 'I wonder…can they hear it, too…?'

Jaden felt a shiver go down his spine, 'Wh-What in the…?'

||Do you feel that?|| Yubel appeared, ||There's something very odd about this place…||

"Yah don't say…" Jesse looked at the spirit, "As if _this_ was normal…"

||Wait…|| Yubel closed her eyes, ||Can you hear that?||

The two boys were confused, "Hear what?"

||Listen carefully.||

They both stayed silent, closing their eyes and listening closely to whatever was there. At first, it was faint, but they did hear something.

"Wait…" Jaden said, "I can hear it…"

Jesse nodded, "Yeah…me, too." He opened his eyes as the noise got louder, "It sounds like…"

"...crying."

Jaden opened his eyes, "But there's no one else here…where is it coming from?"

" **AHHHHHHH!"**

"Ah!" The brunette jumped, tripping backwards and landing in his best friend's arms.

"You okay, Jay?"

He breathed heavily, "I heard…someone scream…"

Soon, the noises grew louder, and everyone else was able to hear the crying, and occasionally, the agonizing screams, as if people were being murdered. This made the group gather closer, to prepare for any sudden appearances.

…

" **LET US OUT!"**

" **WHERE AM I?!"**

" **STOP! PLEASE!"**

" **NO MORE! NO MORE!"**

" **It hurts…it hurts…"**

" **I want to go home…"**

" **Please…let me go…"**

" **Just kill me already!"**

" **WHY ME?!"**

…

Angelica sighed, "So…everyone can hear that now?"

"Why do you act so calm?!" Chazz exclaimed, "Have you been here before?!"

"Unfortunately, I have…many times."

Everyone was shocked, "Why?!"

"So then…what is this place…?" Aster asked.

"It's where Korísatanikí would send some criminals…or even duelists she's beaten…" the girl explained, "The ones who aren't important, the ones who waste her time. She doesn't bother sending them to the Underworld, instead, they're sent here, somewhere created by their own darkest desires and fears. An eternal prison, almost like Hell itself. Once people realize that they're trapped, they start crying for help, trying to find a way out. But there is no escape. That's the horrible tragedy."

"This keeps getting better and better…" Alexis remarked sarcastically.

"Why would that _thing_ want to bring us here?" Jim looked around.

Angelica was about to say something, but she felt another presence, so she stood in front of everyone, "We're about to find out…"

This made the rest freeze. They waited anxiously for the demons to come out. Sure enough, the two did, but they weren't alone.

"Hey, Jay! That's…!" Jesse's eyes widened. Jaden nodded in reply.

"Taylor."

Said boy chuckled darkly, "I haven't seen you guys in a while~ You missed me~?"

"In your dreams!"

Behind him, were about nine more demons. They snarled and licked their lips, looking at their new prey.

"Five, six, seven…eight…hm…Hey! We got everyone~!" Khartai cackled, "Why don't we start the party~?"

||Now we're getting somewhere~||

The void suddenly turned into a large metal room. What was disturbing was the blood splattered all over the walls. Hanging on racks and hooks were many weapons, likely used for torture. The size was enormous, and it could fit hundreds of people in there. Khartai smirked.

"Angelica~ How about you follow me over here~" She walked back till they were almost at the edge of the room, standing there and motioning the other girl to follow. A large shadow manifested behind Khartai, staring with it's glowing red eyes.

Angelica had a face of determination, as she slowly walked till she was a good length apart of the other, "Now what?"

Khartai laughed, "I'd like play a game~ It wouldn't be fun to just kill you!" She pointed to her, "I challenge you to a duel! Winner gets to leave this place, loser will be doomed to suffer for the rest of their lives!"

Aster clenched his fists, "There's no way I'm letting you—!" He was stopped by black ropes gripping onto his body. Taylor laughed.

"Oh, I don't think so~" He pulled Aster to his direction, "You're fighting me!"

"Damn you…"

"Aster!" Jaden and Jesse ran towards them, but were shoved back by the other demons that were blocking their way. In their arms were duel disks that morphed out of their hands.

"I believe we have to beat them!" Bastion said, activating his own duel disk.

Everyone else activated their disks one by one, along with Aster and Angelica. Khartai and Taylor just smirked, morphing their duel disk, and showing their demon eyes.

"Before we start…" Khartai said.

Taylor finished, "...we'd like to show you…our true forms…"

"Brace yourself, Aster!" Angelica shouted.

The two monsters wasted no time. Their black jewels shot out black fog that engulfed them. The ground shook violently, the entire room was trembling and it seemed as if it were to collapse any minute. Everyone stumbled off their feet, except the hellish creatures, who only smirked, enjoying some of the horrified expressions from the teens.

By this point, these demons had crossed the line of nightmare a long time ago. This was _much_ worse than anyone's imagination.

Large rays of red light filled the room. The cackles of the monsters echoed. As if that wasn't bad enough, the two that were causing all of this were mutating into something… _definitely_ not human.

The sound of bones cracking and flesh ripping was heard. Horns, tails, and wings were now visible. Scales seemed to merge with parts of their skin, while their clothing was nothing close to what they had on before. It was clear this was the power of the Underworld, since the pentagram was visible on their foreheads and their dark-red attire.

Aster and the rest were staring with wide-eyes. They were shocked. Angelica, on the other hand, knew this form all too well. She had seen others become creatures like these, and everytime…she _hated_ it. She never understood _why_ people would ever be insane enough to live as a monster for the rest of their lives. And yet, now that she realized it, their own feelings, their own darkness…it made them do this. But…

Was there any way to stop it?

Taylor laughed, "Fuck yeah! This is awesome!"

"I feel…" Khartai looked at her hands, before grinning, "I feel _amazing_!"

Aster glared, "You psychos…"

He groaned in pain when the ropes around him tightened. Taylor scoffed, "Who cares about what we are? And you're calling _us_ psychotic? Don't you know _anything_ about your girlfriend?"

Angelica clenched her fists, "I'm nothing like you!"

"Drop the act, you little bitch." Khartai growled, "Taylor here told me about his… _encounter_ with you. So did your demon half. You _liked_ watching those helpless boys suffer and beg for mercy. You _enjoyed_ watching them scream! You _wanted_ to—!"

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!"

Angelica shook her head violently, which made Khartai more amused. The girl put her duel disk in front of her, "Are we going to duel or what?!"

"The little cutie is right~" Taylor let Aster free from the ropes, "We should start. After all, our minions are already working on their friends."

||Do _whatever_ you please~||

"Thank you…Igemonída."

Aster stole one more glance at Angelica before getting into position, 'I really hope she doesn't get affected by this…'

"DUEL!"

—–

 **A/U: I'm really sorry, but I'm not going to spend, like, FIVE hours playing out their whole duel. That would take lots of researching, planning out, and trying not to f**king MESS UP THE NUMBEERRRSSS! I'm PISSED!**

" **I'm only humaaaaannn~!"**

— **Song reference ^_^ —**

 **Plus, I feel that there would be so much to keep track of. Hell, it's a tag duel. Four people, four decks, four hands to keep track of. Not for me. I can't even keep track of my damn homework. So yeah, if you were looking forward to reading a written out duel, I'm sorry. Again. -_-'**

—–

"Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus! Attack 'em directly!"

"Take out their life points, Neos!"

The duels were tough, but it wasn't anything they couldn't handle. Their opponents were mere lackeys, the leader's army, none of them were significant. Well, ignoring the fact they were searching for new prey.

"Finish this, Cyber Angel Dakini!"

"Tear it down, Black Tyranno!"

"Get this loser out of here! Attack Ojama King!"

But despite being beaten, the demons laughed. They snarled, before being physically dragged to the ground below them, and lord knows where they'd be heading.

Syrus let out an exasperated sigh, "Oh man, I thought vampires were freaky..."

"Glad that's over with." Chazz scoffed.

"This is far from over…" Axel shook his head, "Look."

He pointed to where the other duel was taking place. Angelica and Aster seemed to be having trouble. They had only one of their monsters out, which made two. On the other hand, Khartai and Taylor's field was littered with their own monsters, along with ones that they probably had gained from the Underworld. There was a large pentagram sealing the four people inside. It was making the air thick, and the tense atmosphere was only adding to the effect.

"That seal…" Jaden breathed, voice heavy with concern.

—–

*A few moments earlier*

|The duels weren't taking too much out of them. The only hard part was trying not to get distracted by their deformed states and taunting stares, ones that contained only bloodlust. Of course, their individual battles were distracting them from the bigger image. They hadn't noticed that Khartai had pulled out a very powerful and dangerous card from her deck.

||Use it. Use it, and it'll make sure Aster stays with _you_ , and only _you_.||

Angelica's eyes widened, 'No! She has it!'

Aster was bothered by the way the demon was staring at the card she drew. Was it important?

"Are you going to make your move or what?!"

Khartai just smirked, then started laughing maniacally, "Careful what you wish for, my sweet Aster~"

The silver haired boy internally groaned at the pet name. But his annoyance disappeared when he saw Angelica's fear, "What are you afraid of?"

Before the girl could reply, Khartai held the card up, "Oh, you should be scared too~ After all, you aren't going to be getting out of this dimension anytime soon~"

The card was a field spell…

But not any ordinary one…

"I activate The Lord's Seal!"

As soon as those words left her mouth, red lights shot through the ground, marking on a large pentagram, and putting all four duelists inside. They heard laughs echoing off the transparent walls, seemingly from other demons that may be watching.

Aster suddenly felt a lot of pressure, almost too much, as if gravity was pulling him down. He fell on one knee, panting, as he found it hard to breathe properly.

"Aster!"

Angelica wanted to run over to his side, but another invisible wall prevented her from doing so, "I knew this was going to happen!" She turned her gaze towards Khartai, "Don't you care about him?!"

Khartai sighed, "As long as he doesn't die, I'm fine with it. Besides…" she grinned, "You have _much_ more things to worry about~"

||The seal won't kill him, but it will deplete his stamina, to the point where he won't be able to stand, or even stay conscious. But it's only affecting him, because he's human. We're immortals, therefore the seal itself can't harm us~||

"That's…not going to…stop me…" Aster managed to stand up, but he could barely do so. He was still breathing heavily, and the feeling of a hundred pounds of weight on his shoulders was only making it more difficult, "I've…felt worse…"

Taylor rolled his eyes, "You're a really stubborn one…"

"I get that a lot…"

"But…the seal has other perks, too~"

"Enlighten me."

"For starters…all dark attribute monsters gain 200 ATK points, and all monsters with 'Underworld' in its name gain 500 ATK and DEF points!" Taylor laughed, "The best part is, if you lose, you'll be banished to hell with no way out! It will be endless torture, nightmares, and _so_ much more~!"

Aster groaned, half from exhaustion and half from realization, "You're kidding me…"

"Don't worry~" Khartai grinned, "I won't let you be imprisoned~ Because you're coming with me~"

Angelica growled, "Not on my watch."

"We'll see~ Shall we continue the duel~?"|

—–

*Now*

"Aster looks like he's gonna fall over any minute!" Jesse pointed out, "How long can he stand?"

"We just have to believe he'll pull through…" Jaden said.

'I'm sure he'll be okay…'

…

 _ **Angelica: 2000LP**_

 _ **Aster: 1300LP**_

 _ **Taylor: 2600LP**_

 _ **Khartai: 3500LP**_

…

"Attack Gisa!"

"Go, Destiny Hero Plasma!"

"I activate my trap!"

"I use an equip spell on Underworld's Dragon!"

…

"Beat 'em you two!"

"You've got this!"

…

 _ **Angelica: 1400LP**_

 _ **Aster: 1000LP**_

 _ **Taylor: 200LP**_

 _ **Khartai: 600LP**_

…

"Shit…we're losing…" Taylor mumbled.

"Wow, sherlock. How'd you figure that out?" Khartai snapped back. She turned to the girl in front of her, 'We're so screwed…'

She knew this was cheap, that this was dirty play, but she stuck with it anyway, "Why do you bother with trying to have a happy life? You know what happens every time! Korísatanikí told me what I needed to know."

Angelica felt a little hurt, "What would that be?"

||Don't play dumb, Fos~||

"Whenever you die, you're reincarnated five thousand years later. Meaning _everything_ will be back…Plus, there's something that could _definitely_ kill you…" The magenta haired demon smirked, "It just so happens I've got it right here~"

Something manifested in front of her, forming a shape of an all too familiar item…

It couldn't be…

The knife…

The one thing made of material that would _easily_ kill _anything_. Or _anyone_.

"I think you've seen this plenty of times~" Khartai cackled.

"Hey! Don't kill my prize!" Taylor yelled, "It's no fun carrying a corpse!"

"Calm down," Khartai sighed, "it's just a possibility."

Angelica took a step back, "How did you find it?!"

"A little help from your demon self of course~"

Aster glared, 'We have to finish this duel _now_ ,' he limped, almost falling, 'before they try anything else…I'm running out of time…'

Khartai noticed how weak the boy was getting, "Aw, don't be angry at me! I'm only doing this because I love you~"

...

She always says that…

It's completely wrong…

She can't be serious…

…

What this is…

…isn't _love_ …

It's yearning and loneliness…

Her heart was directing her the wrong way…

And Korísatanikí's influence made it worse for her to get out of the web of lies. The darkness is prevailing…

…but not for long…

…

…

"You _love_ me?" Aster scoffed, "Do you even _know_ what loving someone means? Do you?! What you're doing isn't out of love!"

"You're being a child!" Angelica exclaimed, "You don't get what you want, so you get angry! If you can't earn his heart, then you chose to _steal_ it, is that it?!"

"After every stunt you've pulled, you still think I'd _want_ to be with you?!"

"You're using _force_ to have Aster all to yourself! Why?! Because your trying to fool yourself in believing he'll love you later on?!"

…

…

Sure, the girl may have been… _unfriendly_ …in a manner of speaking, but she was still human on the inside. She still had a human heart. Angelica was willing to give her one last chance…that is…

…if Khartai was willing to take it…

…

…

"How is Angelica any better than me?!" Khartai was on the edge. All these words were bringing out a part of her mind she tried to ignore. Her walls were crumbling. Her demeanor was changing. She was breaking…

"She's nothing like you! She doesn't pull tricks to steal others! She doesn't throw temper tantrums! And she's not ignorant and desperate!"

"But I—!"

"Do you really want me to spell it out?! I! Hate! YOU!"

The demon gasped.

…

He hated her…

…

He hated her…

…

Khartai already knew this…and yet, she continued to try and take him, not caring how the other thought of her in any way. She pretended to not notice…all so that she could play along with her own fantasy…

But it had been shattered…

This was reality…

Like a punch to the gut, she had been snapped out of her dream… a dream that was created out of her own sadness, her own longing…

'Wait…'

That memory…the reply…

'Of course…that's why she told me…'

—–

| "Hypothetically…could you really love someone…"

"...even if they hate you?"

||...||

A trick question, really. But there was an answer, not a very pleasant one at that, still.

||...you're heart is forcing itself to stay with that person. If you know that person hates you, then there should be no reason for any feelings for them to linger. But…I'm no expert. In the end…

…it's what _you're_ deciding to do…|||

—–

'It makes so much sense now…'

'Why it can never be real, I've been following my own stupid illusion this whole time…'

'Because there was nothing else for me to reach out to, I chose the last thing I could cling onto.'

'Aster just happened to be in my reach, and I happened to have met him. After that, I couldn't get rid of him from my life.'

'I had told myself I loved him, that I wouldn't let him go.'

'I guess…it was just my mind playing games with me to get rid of my loneliness…'

'Cause those feelings should have disappeared when Aster started going with someone else. After all…'

'He hates me now…'

'I can't change that…!'

The gem on her choker had a small crack.

"Hey!"

Khartai jumped and looked at Taylor, who seemed pissed, "The hell is up with you?! Focus on the damn duel!"

'He's still trying…? I don't see any point…'

"Are you listening to me?! It's your turn!"

"Would you shut up?"

Taylor stopped yelling. He stared at the girl in disbelief, "What? Have you given up?!"

…

This boy needs a reality check, too.

"And what about you? Your lust for Angelica is going to run short sooner or later, then what? You'll throw her in the streets? Like you've done to…five other girls?"

||Hm? Has someone had lost interest already?||

"Shut your mouth. I can't believe I took sides with a monster like you…your a demon for crying out loud, why the hell did I trust you?"

Khartai stared at the floor, "I'm hopeless…"

The crack on her gem grew bigger, the jewel was very close to breaking completely.

Taylor didn't know what to say at the moment, his mind was whirling with thoughts. Lust was adrenaline for him, the thing that drove him to go to girl after girl. Why? Cause that's all his parents had taught him, after all. His little sister didn't fit their needs, so she met an unfortunate end. Taylor could've just run away, called the cops, or done anything that made _sense_. But, what he thought before, was to beat his parents at their own game. And where did that lead him? Here. Now, he's a psycho, a demon, a monster who doesn't belong here.

His bracelet gem cracked, just like Khartai's.

'What do I do?!'

'What _should_ I do?!'

His mind was split. Does he stay this way, and choose to take Angelica and keep her at her own will? Or does he give up, change his ways, and forget this ever happened? It wasn't like he could be forgiven though, that would likely never happen. What was there to go back to? He did really horrible things to his parents when he went over for a visit...he's certain they're scarred for life.

'Why did I decide to give up being human just for Angelica? Was it really worth it? She belongs to someone else, I can't _steal_ her or anything…'

'This form is permanent, there's no going back to human. Great…some princess demon was messing with my feelings and my mind, and now I've fucked up big time, cause _me_ being a _dumbass_ decided to literally _drag_ Angelica with me.'

||What's this? Their motives are changing dramatically. I've never seen this before…what's going on? Their gems are breaking, too! This is…!||

…

Taylor and Khartai were both thinking the same thing, as they looked at the couple in front of them…

'Those two have something I never will…'

'Something they can't find in anyone else but each other…'

…

'True love…'

…

There was one option left.

They knew what the price was.

But in the end…

…

…

The two glanced at each other, both had decided on something. They nodded, and faced their opponents once more.

Khartai sighed, "No matter what I do, I know what I've done cannot be forgiven. I think it's better if you guys won this duel…" she smiled, a genuine smile this time, "None of us are allowed to surrender as long as this seal is in play, though it can't be destroyed either, so…"

"We've got a card here that we'd use as a last resort," Taylor held a card between two fingers, "Didn't think we'd use it for anything else, huh?"

Aster lowered his duel disk a little, "So what exactly are you trying to tell us? Is this another sick joke?"

"Far from it."

Angelica stared intently at the boy's card, before her eyes widened, "You're self-destructing?!"

Everyone watching from behind gasped.

"They're really doing that?!" Jaden exclaimed.

Axel wasn't convinced, "This could be a trick. Why would they forfeit right now?"

"Maybe…" Alexis hesitated, "Maybe they gave up? Or they didn't see the point in winning anymore…"

"They're backed into a corner as well," Bastion remarked, "with both having less than 1000 life points, and their field close to empty, the odds are against them."

"So they're droppin' everything now?" Jesse said with unbelieving eyes.

"Seems so…"

…

Taylor glanced at the magenta haired girl, "Your move, Khartai."

Khartai sadly smiled, "Oh well, guess there goes the rest of our lives down the drain…" she gazed at one of the cards in her hand, 'This will end it…'

"I…I activate 'Underworld's Chamber of Punishment!'"

The spell card was shown. Angelica looked at the two demons in sympathy. She knew what was coming, and they weren't about to change their minds anymore. This was their final choice.

"I can banish up to four monsters with the name 'Underworld' in them, and for each one, everyone receives 200 points of damage!" She took a deep breath, ready for the impact of the effect, "I banish, 'Underworld's Warrior', 'Underworld's Sage', 'Underworld's Dragon', and, 'Underworld's Giant'!"

Aster couldn't believe what he was seeing, "That's a total of 800…which means…"

The banished demons…they saw everything, they heard it all. And they were _not_ happy with this result. Out of anger, they tormented Taylor and Khartai, using any method they could think of to make them _suffer_. The screams of the opponents were all they heard.

And just like that…

…their life points were gone.

…

 _ **Angelica: 600LP**_

 _ **Aster: 200LP**_

 _ **Taylor: 0LP**_

 _ **Khartai: 0LP**_

…

The seal shrunk, till it only circled around the ones who had just lost. They laid limp on the ground, only steps away from losing consciousness, or even dying.

Aster didn't have the strength to stand up anymore, so he let himself collapse, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. His whole body was numb, and he could barely move a muscle, but he felt extremely relaxed, as if a ton was just lifted of his shoulders.

"Aster!" Jaden and Jesse ran towards the boy. The brunette lifted his head up, relieved to see the other still awake, "You good, bro?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Aster looked at the seal, "I'm not sure about Taylor and Khartai, though." For the last minutes they were in the duel, and the last things he heard them say, his perspective of them changed. They weren't doing this out of anything other than their own longings, and who hasn't done that before? He used to be obsessed with finding out the person behind his father's death, after all. He was no different then how the two wanted to fulfill something in their lives.

 **A/N: I understand I'm mixing the sub and dub versions a bit, but deal with it cause it's been happening for a while now. You should be used to it. :)**

Jesse looked up, seeing Angelica walk towards the demons on the floor, 'What does she wanna say to them…?'

…

Angelica kneeled down, staring at Khartai with empathy, "So, you knew what would happen?"

"I did," Khartai replied hoarsely, voice raspy because of the strain put on her, "I finally get it now. All I was doing was acting like a poor child, following my own fantasies, letting them control my mind, and the choices I make."

She weakly smiled, "You're really lucky, you know that? There are so many girls who have fallen head over heels for Aster, myself included, and out of all of them…he chose _you_. Someone who had only introduced themselves a while ago."

"Yeah…" Angelica smiled back, "I know that…and that's why I'm thankful for every second I'm with him."

The other nodded, "I don't think I'll _ever_ be able to repay for what I've put you all through. I just want to let you know, that I'm sorry."

"It's…" The aquamarine eyed girl sighed, still smiling, "I forgive you. I do. Because I understand what you've been feeling. You never had anything else to hold on to, nothing else to reach towards. No career set your interest, everything seemed empty to you, then there was that one special person who gave color to the world around you. I've been through that, so I can't stay mad."

Khartai's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, before closing them, a grateful smile gracing her lips. When she opened them again, they returned to their normal, dark violet-blue color, no longer demon like, "...Take care of Aster, alright?"

"Of course."

…

Taylor sighed in content, using the last of his power to reach into Aster's mind. It was his turn.

'Look…I know what I did was stupid, in more ways than one, and I'm sorry. Deep down, I knew doing what my parents have been doing was wrong, but my anger got the better of me. So…that's how I ended up like a perverted douchebag. Now, I know that just using adrenaline from lust isn't getting me anywhere. Angelica is above being used as a toy, _way_ above that.'

Aster waited for him to finish, marveling how Taylor managed to find the courage to turn himself in, let alone apologize.

'She's really special, one of kind as I've said before. You…you no doubt have been given a gift, man. An amazing one. So don't give her up…'

'Don't worry, I would never do that,' Aster replied, 'You've been a pretty crappy person, but it's not everyday someone like you apologizes.'

Taylor chuckled at that, 'I _do_ have manners, you know. Looking back…god damn, I was an asshole. And to think I got into this academy…'

The silver haired boy sighed, 'As long as you don't mess with Angelica again, I won't hold anything against you.'

'So…you're forgiving me that easily?'

'I've been taught that everyone gets a second chance.'

'...'

…

||...Angelica…why must you make _everything_ much harder than it should be? This could have been simpler if you just listened to me!||

||...||

||I…have no choice…||

||I'm going to solve this with my own hands…||

…

 ***SNAP***

"AHHHHHH!"

Angelica stepped back a good distance, looking away and shutting her eyes. She couldn't watch.

"What's happening to them?!" Jaden shouted, "Their gems broke, and now they're…they're disappearing!" It was like they were dust, being slowly blown by the wind. Was it their loss?

"Hey! Angelica! Can you explain to me why they're evaporating into thin air?!" Jesse exclaimed, "Is this supposed to happen?!"

Angelica sadly gazed at the two, "This is the price they have to pay for losing the duel, and breaking their bond with the Underworld, or the darkness. They can't return back to normal, and those black jewels were their lifeline. Now that they've shattered…Taylor and Khartai can't exist…"

Aster grimaced, "That's messed up…"

Taylor and Khartai, despite their pain, and despite the fact that they were dying, had smiles on their faces. They felt happy, and peaceful. Because they had been forgiven, for something that was impossible to take back. It was one of the most greatest feelings they had felt in years, to be freed from a path of hate, revenge, and pain. Ironically, it had all been solved by the same people that were causing this anger. What goes around, comes around.

"Aster…"

"Angelica…"

As the last of their bodies faded into oblivion, as their last bits of life was draining, they used their last seconds to make their gratitude known to the people they hurt.

" _Thank you…"_

…

That was it. They were gone.

They were no more.

But…was it over?

No…

Not even in the slightest.

There was one more person they had to deal with.

The same person who manipulated Khartai and Taylor, the same person who had caused so much misery among so many others.

…Korísatanikí.

Angelica looked on with a bold look on her face. At this stage, gaining the power from the two who had gathered it, the ones who just disappeared, the demon had enough to become solid. She never thought it would happen, but she was proven wrong. Being preoccupied by the duel didn't distract her from the bigger picture.

||This just goes to show, that you can't rely on _anyone_. Not friends, not family, not even followers…only _yourself_.||

Lashes of dark shadows whirled into a tornado, tearing apart the metal room, leaving nothing but a vast, empty void. No light, no life, nothing but darkness.

Korísatanikí showed up in front of them, her usual spiritual body was solidifying before their very eyes. Her attire was that of a warrior princess, but had blood red and black colors splashed onto the clothing, a pentagram in the middle. Her face very well mirrored Angelica's, as well as the hair, but they were different, too. Her eyes were still the demon-like ones, but instead of a soft look, she had a glare that could easily kill. Her hair was tinted a shade darker than her counterpart's, and the bracelet she wore that was similar to the other's had the same gems, but had a shadow hidden in each one of them. There was no doubt. It _was_ her.

||If I have to be the one to end this…||

||...then so be it.||

Syrus, being the boy that he is, hid behind the closest person he could find, which was Chazz, "It's _her_. And she's solid, too!"

Usually, the black haired duelist would've shouted something like, 'Hey, I'm not your bodyguard!', or, 'This thing doesn't stand a chance against me!', but he couldn't. Korísatanikí _was_ scaring the crap out of him, more than he'd like to admit, "Damn…"

Her aura practically _screamed_ terror. Any normal person would be shaking in their boots, paralyzed in fear by the creature in front. And while the gang had seen things remotely similar to the demon, it still freaked them out. They all stepped back, very cautious of any power that would have been used. Atticus protectively stood in front of Alexis, Syrus let out a little whimper, still hiding behind Chazz. Axel had a hand near his duel disk, preparing for an attack. Hassleberry's eyes went into predatory mode, while growling every so often. Bastion was calculating the possible outcomes of this, most of which weren't very… _happily ever after_. Jim had gone into a defensive stance.

Jaden and Jesse were supporting Aster, who was still worn out from the duel. One arm around each of their shoulders, as they too stepped back. The last thing they wanted was to be in firing range.

||Looks like it's the end of the line for all of you…||

Angelica glared, "A part of me can't believe you went this far, that you'd go all this way just to swallow me into the dark. Then again…there's another part of me that isn't surprised."

||Oh? And why would that be?||

"You're stuck. Debating on whether to risk pulling another trick. In the end, you thought it would be better to finish me off with your own power."

||Angelica, you were always _so_ smart, it's no wonder everyone ends up in the palm of your hand.||

The demon had a duel disk merged to her arm, holding it up, and a small smirk showing.

||Well, you were right. It's about time I finished the job! After this is over, you'll be nothing but an empty, emotionless demon. You won't be able to feel _anything_.||

"If this is the only way…" Angelica sadly sighed, "I guess I have no choice."

"Angelica!"

The girl turned towards Aster's direction, taken aback to see his face written with worry. He was almost _begging_ for her not to go through with this. Can you blame him? This was an unpredictable duel. The two had been sharing a body and mind for more than five thousand years, they know each other's decks like the back of their hands. The winner can be either one of them. Angelica was very aware of this fact, but if it meant the rest can live on, she was willing to take that chance. She smiled, "Aster…I promise…I'll win. For you, and for everyone else. I need you to believe in me…"

Aster's expression slightly changed, still showing concern, but it was more confident. He nodded, "Beat her."

Angelica nodded back, facing the other people in the room. They all showed their support, giving her signs of good luck, and encouraging her further to win.

She turned back to Korísatanikí, "Before we start…there's one more thing I'd like to ask…" She just need to be sure of one thing…

||...Make it quick.||

"Skotádi…"

"…do you really want to get rid of my light?"

The demon notably tensed up.

||What…kind of question is that…?||

"Are you going to answer me or not?"

||I…||

This left the group confused. Just a few minutes ago, Korísatanikí was so cocky, speaking with no hesitation, very sure of how everything was going to play out. But now, she seemed uneasy, almost frightened by the question. What did it mean to her anyway? To take away the other's light?

The counterpart audibly groaned, shaking her head violently, before her glare from before came back.

||I've heard enough of this crap! Do I want to take your light? Do I seriously need to answer that? The answer should be very obvious by now! You know all too well what I'm trying to achieve! So, are we going to start the duel or what?!||

"...Right…"

Angelica highly doubted Korísatanikí's protests. The way she reacted at the question clearly meant something. And it wasn't because of what the girl saw that made her think this…it was what she _hoped_ for, what she _believed_ in. Because, at the end of the day, the demon was her friend, the other side of her soul, nothing could change that.

"DUEL!"

She didn't care what Korísatanikí was trying to tell herself, what she was trying to fool herself into thinking. All that matter was that this cycle _ended_ , that the chains of her father's superiority could be broken, for good. It would be hard, but it would all be worth it, to get her counterpart to see the truth, to see what they were always meant to be. Not rivals, not enemies fighting for pure light or pure darkness over the body and mind. They were supposed to be _equal_ , to balance each other's differences, and to accept the other despite being polar opposites.

It was to show how much she _meant_ to her.

'Skotádi…I swear…I swear on my life, that I'll set us both free…'

'...free from this curse…'

—–

/ _Isn't it lovely, all alone?_ /

/ _Heart made of glass, my mind of stone_ /

/ _Tear me to pieces, skin to bone_ /

/ _Hello, welcome home_ /

— "Lovely" by Billie Eilish & Khalid

*Author's Note*

Yeah, yeah, you're all pissed at me for taking more than two months to release this chapter…

Angelica: Oh, we're _MUCH_ more than _pissed_ …

…I know…you, too.

Korísatanikí: SO YOU JUST DECIDE TO LEAVE US HERE?! YOU HAD MUCH BETTER THINGS TO DO?! IS THAT IT?!

No…that's not—!

Korísatanikí: THEN WHAT?! YOU GOT A BETTER EXPLANATION?!

Jaden: …you're really mean…just disappearing like that for nearly three months.

Guys! Hold on!

 ***If you don't want to hear me rant, whine, and complain about everything that has been going on with me the past two/three months, then you don't have to read this next part, you can just skip and wait a little for the next chapter…***

Look, there was a point in time where school was seriously taking a lot out of me. Lots of things were happening with people I know, shit was appearing left and right, I just couldn't focus on the story, or anything else, really.

It came to the point where…I lost motivation. I lost the motivation to keep continuing this, and I didn't have any inspiration…I literally hit rock bottom.

But, during that time as well, I had slowly been telling myself to do better. I know people _do_ read my stories, so every chapter I've written wasn't all for nothing! So…after weeks of getting my shit together, I came back! I'd like to thank _everyone_ who's visited, who's enjoyed each chapter, and who's waited _very_ patiently for this one to be published, it means a lot. So…yeah…

Angelica: …I didn't really realize…

It's fine, I forgive you.

Angelica: *smiles* I'm not mad at you anymore.

As always, I'd like to thank presea221 for every review you've posted and the feedback you've given me!

And next chapter…well my plan is posting it next week, wish me luck!

Byyyeeee!


	17. Chapter 16

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 16**

"Hello darkness my old friend…."

"I've come to talk to you again…"

Angelica: Pffttttt…What are you singing?!

XD Lol I thought it fit :)

Setting my horrible singing aside…it's time to start this chapter!

I don't own anything, except for Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, and the cards I made up.

"..." Talking

'...' Thought

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

 **...** Demon language

 **WARNING!: More cussing(let's be honest, when Korísatanikí is here, there will always be cussing). And…I think that's it.**

Okay! Let's go!

* * *

/ _Angel of Darkness..._ /

/ _Angel of Darkness…_ /

/ _The world is in your hand…_ /

/ _But I will fight until the end!_ /

/ _Angel of Darkness..._ /

/ _Angel of Darkness..._ /

/ _Don't follow your command…_ /

/ _But I will fight and I will stand!_ /

— "Angel of Darkness" by Alex Christensen

* * *

*Void(Angelica's P.O.V)*

I remember it like it was just yesterday…

The way she had stuck up for me, even in my weakest state. The way she showed -albeit in her own way- that she actually _cared_. I had always believed she never meant it when she was being harsh on me, when she'd scold me for being too naive. Hell, she hated it when someone would give her a nickname. And yet, when I gave her one, she didn't protest…she liked the name. In return, she had given me a nickname, too. That's how we grew closer. I've been through enough, and I've been able to see through her psychotic outer persona to know that she sees me as a friend too.

We had always been stuck together…and even though it was always supposed to be that way, even if I had a _choice_ …I'd still choose for her to be by my side. Because there was nobody else like her. Yeah, it's corny and I'd probably never have the guts to announce it publicly, but…that doesn't mean the feelings are non-existent in any way.

Skotádi…

She's my best friend, the mirrored half of my very soul…

So then…why?

Why must we do this?

This isn't like the fights we've had before. The problem was she never had the courage to admit her soft side, to show how she really sees things. I I mean…I understand she isn't supposed to have any strong emotions whatsoever, considering her origin. But she _does_ have feelings! She _does_ have emotions! The fight that's about to begin is horrible…this is the _real_ thing, life or death. Well…not really. I don't know if she fully understands our tied lifelines…Actually, that's stupid, of course she does.

That's _not_ what I'm afraid of.

I'm afraid of losing her, and I'm afraid of losing Aster, along with everyone else at the same time. There's much more at stake than just losing, and not seeing Skotádi ever again…the situation is… _different_.

But…if I can end our loop of suffering, if I can free ourselves, as well as the others I love…then I'm willing to make a sacrifice…

I _will_ win.

I _will_ break the curse.

If it's the last thing I do…

* * *

*Void(Normal P.O.V)*

"DUEL!"

"I'll make the first move!" Angelica had started off with a hand that wasn't half bad. This was a decent start.

"I summon 'Sorcerer of Fate' in attack position!"

 _ **ATK: 1550/ DEF: 1500**_

A very wise and mysterious man dressed in gold, dark blue, and dark purple robes appeared, wielding what seemed to by a crystal ball, along with a spell book.

"When this card is on the field, I can special summon his apprentice from my deck! Come out, 'Sorceress of the Future', also in attack mode!"

A young woman with the similar robes appeared, the colors were more lighter and vibrant in comparison though. Her light cerulean hair was tied into a bun, and she held a mirror in her left hand.

 _ **ATK: 1400/ DEF: 1300**_

"I end my turn with one face-down card!"

Aster inquisitively stared at the playing field, "I haven't seen Angelica use those cards…did she change her deck last minute?"

"I didn't even know she had more than one deck." Jaden said, "What's this one called? It looks to have more Spellcaster types."

||Sorcerers and sorceress, hm?|| Yubel mused, ||This will be interesting. Korísatanikí _must_ know this deck quite well, and there's a great chance she has the cards to counter.||

"Thanks for the reassurance, Yubel." Aster sarcastically remarked. The spirit simply rolled her eyes and dismissed the comment.

 **A/N: I've decided to have Korísatanikí's dialogue in bold for this chapter, just to distinguish her from everyone else :)**

" **I see…it's this deck."** Korísatanikí blandly stated, **"No matter. This duel is one I seriously plan to win. I draw!"**

" **I summon 'Underworld's Warrior' in attack position!"**

A demon dressed in ragged black war clothing that barely covered his scales showed up, holding a jagged sword and a spear on his back.

 _ **ATK: 1500/ DEF: 1350**_

" **I use the equip spell, 'Black Pendant' on my warrior! Now he gains an additional 500 attack points!"**

 _ **ATK: 2000/ DEF: 1350**_

" **I activate his effect! When 'Underworld's Warrior' is attached with an equip spell, he's given an extra 200 attack points!"**

 _ **ATK: 2200/ DEF: 1350**_

"I never liked that spell…" Jesse grimaced, "That darn thing deals 500 points of damage once it's destroyed. It can get _real_ annoyin'..." Having encountered it before, especially when someone overused it, more specifically since their deck would focus on effect damage, it _did_ get on his nerves a little. That was saying something, since the duelist had a great amount of patience.

" **Now then…"** Korísatanikí smirked, **"Underworld's Warrior, attack that sorceress!"**

The being yelled in a reversed language, raising his sword and running to strike.

"I activate her effect! Once per turn, she cannot be destroyed in battle!"

" **But you still take the damage~"**

 _ **Angelica: 3200LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 4000LP**_

" **I activate the Quick-Play spell, 'Bloody Vengeance'! When a dark attribute Warrior-type monster fails to destroy a monster during the battle phase, I can attack you directly with half of its original attack points!"**

 _ **ATK: 750/ DEF: 1350**_

" **Let's try again! This time, attack Angelica directly!"**

 **AdínomegI ruo fo eman eht ni hself yht hguorht ecreip llahs I!**

The demon once more lunged towards Angelica, a semi-transparent spear going right through her. The girl limped a little due to the pain.

 _ **Angelica: 2450LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 4000LP**_

" **I set two cards. Now it's your turn, Fos."**

 _ **ATK: 2200/ DEF: 1350**_

"Shoot…" Jaden cursed, "She lost almost half of her life-points in one turn. That's not good."

Angelica overheard this, and gave the boy a smile, "Believe me, I've been in worse situations." She turned her attention back to the duel, "I draw!"

'I know Skotádi will recognize this one.'

"I activate 'Polymerazation'! Fusing 'Sorcerer of Fate' on my field with 'Sorcerer of Sin' and 'Sorcerer of Decision'!"

Everyone except Korísatanikí was amazed, "She has a Fusion monster?!"

'Angelica…' Aster smiled to himself, '...you never seize to amaze me. There's always something you're hiding.'

The three mentioned sorcerers came together, merging into one.

"I call on, 'Divine Sorcerer of Entangled Destiny'!"

The new fusion monster had long robes that reached inches past the feet. His hair went up to his shoulders, and around his neck was a gold tassel with engravings in a different language. He held a large crystal ball, and he held his free hand out, with a ball of energy floating on it. His face was stern, pretty much unreadable.

 _ **ATK: 2400/ DEF: 1950**_

"Entangled…destiny…?" Aster repeated, staring at the new sorcerer in awe. He then saw Angelica looking at him with a knowing face. It was unknown to the boy that she had recently gained this card because of _him_. Because, even though it sounded like a cliche fairytale, it was like _fate_ brought them together, as if destiny tied them together from the very beginning, and they were meant to be.

It was also unknown to the others, that this was the same wise god who came to Angelica when she was born, predicting her future, predicting the choice that would befall her. He had seen this vision, that the symbolized light and dark would fight over dominance, but he hadn't thought of participating in this ongoing fight. It was a matter of fate, as he believed. So…there wasn't much he could do in terms of making the odds _even_.

"I activate his effect! I can look at the top five cards of your deck, and put them in any order I want. Then, if you don't use the cards on the turn you draw them, you lose 500 life points!"

"That's one powerful effect." Jesse said, "Now the only problem is _what_ the cards are."

" **Up to your old tricks, hm?"** Korísatanikí chuckled, **"Fine, here you go."**

She drew the five cards and put them up for everyone to see. Angelica had known what these cards were, but the one she was most concerned about was the field spell. It would give Korísatanikí an advantage in the duel, and she can't risk it.

After examining the cards a little more, Angelica made up her mind, "Place that one on top…the one next to it second. Put that monster card third, following will be the other monster, and the field spell goes last…"

" **I see you're playing it safe,"** the demon put the cards in that order, **"I don't think it will do you any good…"**

The girl ignored the threat, moving on to her next course of action, "I activate the field spell, 'Parádeisos ston Ouranó'!"

"Para- wha?" Syrus said with utter confusion. The others hadn't followed on the name either. It was in a different language, that was for sure.

||Greek.|| Yubel stated, ||From what I know, the name is in Greek.||

Before the others could ask for a translation, the entire area turned into clouds. Suddenly, a large cliff emerged, with a waterfall dropping into a lake. Flowers bloomed in all colors, and cherry blossoms were growing from trees. Four pillars of white stone appeared in each corner they could see, and grass was covering the once rock land. The breeze felt amazing, and the sun was shining high in the sky. It was a beautiful sight.

"This makes sense," Alexis pointed out, "I'm pretty sure the greek word 'parádeisos' means 'paradise'!"

"That explains it," Jaden nodded, looking around more, "it seems so peaceful here."

Angelica sadly smiled, taking in the view, "This was one of our little getaways, remember?" She turned towards Korísatanikí, who avoided her gaze and stared at the growing flower beneath her. The others were intrigued at the statement, since it was never known they'd actually stay here. Wasn't this just a hologram? A card?

" **I always protested that I didn't like it here,"** Korísatanikí sighed, **"no matter how much I hated it, you insisted on coming here, dragging me with you. Frankly, I just didn't bother trying to leave sometimes. Why are you making me recall those memories? That's all in the past."**

"I just wanted to remind you…" Angelica beamed, "...that no matter who wins, you'll always be my best friend!"

 _ **ATK: 2600/ DEF: 2150**_

' **Dammit, Fos…'** Korísatanikí clenched her fists, **'...do you even know what you're saying? Why would you still insist on me being your** _ **friend**_ **?! And why am I reacting to that? I should care less about what she thinks of me...but…'**

' **...there's something telling me otherwise.'**

"Because of the field spell, every monster with the name 'Sorcerer' or 'Sorceress' gains 200 attack and defense points."

 _ **Sorceress of the Future: ATK: 1600/ DEF: 1300**_

"Finally, my Divine Sorcerer's second effect let's me look at the top two cards of my deck, and I can choose which one to place in my hand, and which to put at the bottom of my deck!"

"That can be a bit risky," Axel said, "in other words, it might affect their next few turns, or even who ends up winning."

"It's similar to my Destiny Heroes," Aster added, " controlling destiny, and what happens in the duel. Manipulating everything from drawing, to the monsters, to time."

" **Fate played a huge role in our future."**

Everyone faced the demon, **"They said destiny would play it out for us, and that it wasn't for us to decide whether or not we are to be balanced. I really hated that."**

Angelica's face softened for a second, before going back to a look of determination, "Divine Sorcerer! Attack Underworld's Warrior!"

Large beams shot out from the sky, and in a blink of an eye, the demon was gone.

 _ **Angelica: 2450LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3600LP**_

" **Black Pendant's effect deals you 500 points of damage once it's destroyed!"**

 _ **Angelica: 1950LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3600LP**_

"Sorceress of the Future, attack her directly!"

The young woman nodded, light energy shooting from the mirror in her hand, and going straight to the target.

" **I activate my face-down card, 'Endless Black Pit'! By paying 500 life points, I can change the attacking monster's attribute to dark, and not allow it to attack nor change its position!"**

The sorceress stopped the energy from reaching Korísatanikí, and the mirror broke. She fell to the floor, staring blankly in front of her. Angelica flinched when she saw the emptiness in her eyes, "Sorry…"

 _ **Angelica: 1950LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3100LP**_

"I end my turn…"

" **I draw!"**

* * *

*Flashback*

| "I'm not like that all the time!"

" **You are."**

"Are not!"

" **Are too."**

"Are not!"

" **Don't make me kill that cat over there."**

"Huh?! Why would you kill an innocent kitty cat?!"

" **Cause I can, and I will."**

"No, please! Please don't kill the kitty! It's so cute! Pleeeeaaasssseeeeeee!"

" **Alright alright! Just don't start crying, you know I hate it when you do that!"**

"Eheh~"

" **Jeez…You really are just a child again…a small, clueless child…"**

"What did you say~?"

" **Oh nothing…"**

"Come on! Tell me!"

" **No."**

"Tell me!"

" **No."**

"Hmph! Fine then! I'm gonna go over there now!"

" **Do you want people to make fun of you?"**

"Actually…no, I'll stay here then…"

" **Exactly. Besides, you wouldn't last a minute out there without me having to watch you all the time."**

"But I want to make new friends!"

' **Not this again…she's always the same little kid every time. When will you learn…?'**

"...um…hello?"

" **Hm?"**

"Since your my new bestie, what do I call you~?"

" **Bestie…?"**

"Yeah! You're my best friend in the whole wide world~!"

' **Again…? Seriously…?'**

…

' **...For some reason, I'm not bothered by being her best friend or anything. Wait, what the hell am I thinking?!'**

" **My name is Korísatanikí. But…you can just call me Skotádi."**

"Skotádi? Mm...okay then! I love it! I wanna play now, let's go!"

" **Sure…"**

' **...I almost feel bad for having to ruin her life when she gets older, like I've done a few times before. But it has to be done.'** |

* * *

*Present*

" **Using my face-down spell card, 'Dark World Lightning', I send one card from my hand to the graveyard, then destroy your set card."**

Korísatanikí chose a card without hesitation, and the face-down card on Angelica's field disintegrated.

" **I activate another spell card, 'Dark Magic Veil', which allows me to special summon a Dark-attribute Spellcaster type monster from my hand or graveyard. I summon 'Underworld's Black Magic Trickster'!"**

A demon with a _very_ messed up and ripped cape appeared. His face was slightly deformed, even though most demons are contorted in some sort of way, this one was noticeable. He held a wand with a small black pentagram at the end, and was balancing on dark mist.

 _ **ATK: 1600/ DEF: 1350**_

"I knew it," Angelica remarked, "that's the second reason you used that spell. Two birds with one stone."

" **Precisely,"** Korísatanikí grinned, **"now then…I sacrifice my 'Black Magic Trickster', in order to summon, 'Underworld's Dragon', which can be tribute summoned straight from the deck!"**

The demon was burned to a crisp. A large roar was heard, making the place shake. Out of the ground came out a dragon breathing fire, with a pentagram etched into its scales.

 _ **ATK: 2200/ DEF: 1800**_

Angelica's eyes widened, 'Wait…if Black Magic Trickster was sent to the graveyard…then that means…!'

She raised her hand towards the group watching, creating a force field around them. They all were slightly nerved at this, since it could've meant disaster was approaching.

"Angelica? What's going on?!" Aster shouted.

Korísatanikí was the one to answer that, **"When 'Black Magic Trickster' is sent to the graveyard, I can choose to get rid of one spell or trap card on the field. Obviously…I chose the field spell, 'Parádeisos ston Ouranó'!"**

The grass slowly caught on fire, and little by little, the flames were spreading throughout the entire plain, burning the trees, the flowers, and even the pillars crumbled under the heat. The paradise was destroyed.

"I-Isn't this just a hologram?!" Syrus exclaimed, "Why did it get hot all of a sudden?!"

" **This is** _ **far**_ **from a hologram, boy,"** Korísatanikí smirked, **"This is the real thing. What you're seeing here is real fire, real flowers turning to nothing but dust."**

"Like a shadow duel?!" Alexis said.

" **Shadow duel? Ah yes, from what you've experienced before. I'd say…it's** _ **much**_ **worse~"**

Angelica just watched as the beautiful scene was gone, and replaced with a living fire pit. She turned towards the others, "As long as you're in that sphere, nothing here can touch you. You'll be safe."

" **How…** _ **considerate**_ **of you~"** Korísatanikí mockingly said, **"Always putting others ahead of yourself. That's always how you've been."**

Aster gritted his teeth, "Are you saying that's a bad thing?!"

" **Is it not?"**

"A heartless demon like you would never understand!"

"Aster…" Angelica sighed, "That's not entirely true. She's not heartless, she just refuses to feel anything other than bloodlust, joy, and anger. There are many things she _has_ felt, but is too focused on her 'purpose' to admit it."

" **I don't need you defending me against your boyfriend, Fos."** The demon scoffed, **"If anything, you should be** _ **hating**_ **me. For everything I've done to you, for every string I had to pull. For every little thing I've said to you that had hurt you. How dense are you?"**

"Skotádi," Angelica replied, with a serious but slightly hurt face, "I know deep down, you didn't think that hurting me to that extent was right. I know that, even if was for a fraction of a second, your will to complete your 'tasks' had gone down, but it would be repaired in an instant. You were always there. In my past lives, even if you were sometimes the reason for my pain, you'd be there to try and patch it up, to try and heal it. I _care_ about you! I—!"

" **I've heard enough!"** Korísatanikí interrupted, **"In case you've forgotten, we're in the middle of a duel. And I don't know about you, but I'd like to end this as soon as possible!"** She lightly patted the dragon on the field, **"Ready?"**

The beast roared, fire shooting out of its mouth. It then stared at the girl in front.

"Hey," Angelica waved, a sad smile visible, "it's been a while, hasn't it?"

The dragon flapped its wings in response, apparently being able to understand. It had known her because of the previous encounters they've had. And since it's undying loyalty was only towards the rulers and superiors of the Underworld, it was under Angelica's command, acting as a pet, and a monster used in fights at the same time. Needless to say, it had grown accustomed to her appearance.

 **Uoy dnammoc I, reh kcatta tsum uoy.**

After Korísatanikí said that, it reacted somewhat negatively. Of course, the demon had expected this. You couldn't change someone's image of someone else with only a few words in less than a minute.

" **Attack that sorceress, now!"**

The dragon reluctantly shot a large blow of fire out of its mouth, destroying the defenseless girl.

 _ **Angelica: 1350LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3100LP**_

" **I activate my second face-down card, 'Shadow's Deception'. If one of your monsters that was affected by 'Endless Black Pit' was sent to the graveyard, I can bring it back onto my side of the field!"**

The sorceress came back, this time her eyes were clouded with darkness, and the mirror was blurry because of the fog present inside.

||I could tell this was planned out beforehand,|| Yubel placed a finger on her chin, ||the way she didn't hesitate to choose what cards to place, and how she wasn't clearly surprised at any of the moves thrown at her. Either that or she just has strong guts.||

"I'd say both," Axel remarked, "besides, they've been sharing a body for more than a thousand years, it wouldn't be _too_ surprising to see tactics you've watched over and over again."

Bastion nodded, "Being a supernatural entity would have also enhanced your thinking and precision."

" **That's my turn."**

Angelica stared for an uncomfortably long period of time, before coming back to earth, "It's my turn, then! I draw!"

* * *

*Flashback*

| "B-But…I thought…I thought they were my friends! How could they do this to me?!"

" **You really believed everything they told you?"**

"Well…y-yeah, because I thought they were telling the truth! I thought they were true friends! That's why I trusted them!"

" **See? That's where you went wrong. You made the same mistake you have in your past lives, do I need to remind you?"**

"No…you don't."

" **Not everyone is who you think they are. Someone—no,** _ **anyone**_ **can come up and lie straight to your face. You need to tell the difference between real and fake."**

"...I'm sorry…"

" **What? That's not necessarily a reason to apologize, you know…"**

"It is…I'm such a nuisance to you…I keep bothering you with every little thing I do. Why do still even talk to me? Why don't you leave?"

" **Ha! First of all, if I wanted to leave, I wouldn't be able to anyway, since we're practically handcuffed together. Second of all, sure you may be annoying at times, and occasionally get on my nerves…but hey,** _ **you**_ **put up with** _ **my**_ **bullshit all the time, don't you?"**

"Yeah, like when you tried to rip a guy's head off for trying to kidnap me! You scared him half to death!"

" **He got what he deserved!"**

"Or how about when you almost snapped a kid's neck for taking away my bear for a while?"

" **...okay I** _ **may**_ **have gone a little extra there…"**

"A little? Seriously? He had to go to therapy for weeks!"

" **Haha! I get it, I get it! I was making big deal out of it, that's not my point! The point I'm trying to make here is…we both got stuff we don't like about each other, things that are the complete opposite of what we prefer to think or believe but…we deal with it in the end. Cause…dammit I'm not good with this corny-ass stuff!"**

"Hehe~ It's fine, I know what you're trying to say. We still rely on each other, we're two halves of a whole after all!"

" _ **Literally**_ **…"**

"I don't need friends who use me for their own benefit. They're the ones who messed up and just played around with me for fun! Besides, I've still got my best friend right here!"

" **..."**

"Something wrong? **"**

" **No, no. Just still getting used to the cheesy 'best friend' thing."**

"You better get used to it, soon! Cause there's no one who will replace you!" |

* * *

*Present*

"I activate 'Graceful Charity'! I draw three cards and discard two." An empty field and a powerful monster on her opponent's side was a tough spot to get out of. Hopefully though, she'd pull through and _not_ be obliterated by the dragon. At least for this turn.

"I summon 'Consecrated Light'!"

 _ **ATK: 0/ DEF: 0**_

" **...smart."**

Syrus panicked a little, "What card is that? Why did she place it? If that dragon destroys it she'll—!"

"Deep breaths, Sy, deep breaths," Jaden said, "Angelica knows what she's doing, I'm sure there's some effect that comes with it."

||Correct,|| Yubel replied, ||in fact, it's can be very effective against Korísatanikí's deck. Dark attribute monsters cannot be normal or special summoned, they can't attack, they can't destroy that card, _and_ Angelica won't take battle damage from any of the attacks that may happen.||

Everyone was amazed at how powerful it sounded, and how it was a level one monster. Not even rare and _still_ able to counter a certain attribute completely. The only problem with this was using a simple spell, trap, or monster effect to either negate those effects, or just destroy the card. Guess that's why it wasn't considered _too_ powerful or ranked higher.

Knowing the level of skill the demon had…it was pretty safe to assume the monster would be gone soon. But really, anything can show up.

"By activating the spell card, 'Angel's Blessing', all card effects are useless against my monster until my next turn!"

Light shone down, and an angel quickly shed some…whatever she had and flew back up into the sky. Korísatanikí rolled her eyes.

" **That card is very annoying…"**

"That's the end of my turn."

"Maybe she'll be able to protect that card after all," Chazz said, "if her luck keeps up, then she'll make it through without losing a bunch of life points again."

" **Funny how you say** _ **luck**_ **,"** Korísatanikí mouthed the word 'luck' dramatically, **"luck doesn't mean everything in a duel, hasn't** _ **anyone**_ **taught you that? Or are you just so air headed that it goes through one ear and out the other?"**

Chazz growled, "I'll get you for that…!"

The demon scoffed, **"Oh I'd** _ **love**_ **to see you try!"**

" **My turn! Draw!"**

* * *

*Flashback*

| "Skotádi…who are they…?"

" **...I don't—oh…oh shit."**

"What?"

" **Run!"**

"Wait why?! Who are they?!"

" **Just run! Go!"**

"AH! Did they just try to shoot me?!"

" **Keep going!"**

" **Stop looking back and face forward!"**

"I'm gonna die, I'm so gonna die!"

" **Calm down and stay focused, you have something to do remember?!"**

"How the hell do you expect me to get away from them?!"

" **Use your abilities, what else?!"**

"What?! No! I swore that I'd never use them!"

" **Dammit, don't you see the situation you're in right now?! I can't have you dying yet, Fos!"**

"Yeah but—! Wait…yet? What do you mean by _yet_?! Tell me, Skotádi!"

" **There's no time to explain! Just use your abilities or I'll force myself in control and do it for you!"**

"Okay! I'll do it!"

…

…

"Jesus…what did they want from me…?"

" **More like what they wanted from** _ **us**_ **…"**

"Huh? But they don't know you exist!"

" **I'm pretty sure they do. They believed it, and when they found you, they were a hundred percent sure I** _ **do**_ **exist. So now they're hunting both of us down."**

"Because we're immortals…?"

" **Yes…unfortunately they won't stop till you're dead.** **That can be very irritating."**

"And…why don't you want me dead _yet_?"

" **Oh boy…this'll be a lot of explaining…and I'm positive you'll hate me for it."**

"Why do you think that? I'd never hate you! I've said it before, you're my best friend! There's no one out there who's the same as you!"

" **...okay then…"** |

* * *

*Present*

' **She should have hated me a long time ago. I don't deserve what she's doing for me…so why? Is…is all of this even the right thing to—Agh! Don't fucking go there!'**

" **I activate Pot of Greed,"** She drew two more cards, and her eyes widened in surprise. In her hand was a very unique and rare spell card, one that had belonged to someone else. She had receive a long time ago…

…by the same person she'd use it against today.

Korísatanikí lightly chuckled at the irony, **"Fos…do you know what I have in my hand?"**

Angelica was startled, "What did you draw?"

" **I'm sure you remember it. I've never used it…well…until now, that is."**

The girl narrowed her eyes, looking intently at the held up card, staring straight through it and trying to determine what exactly it was. But the connection wouldn't go through, "Why are you blocking me from seeing it?"

" **Now c'mon, that's no fun! The way you're trying to find out is** _ **lame**_ **! Let me just play it! First I'll summon 'Underworld's Predator'."**

A fire-breathing wolf with black and red fur appeared. It's eyes were dark red, and it had a chain collar with a pentagram in the middle. It's claws were long and sharp, and it's teeth were piercing. Was it even considered a wolf? It was almost twice the size of a normal wolf, so that's not a possibility.

 _ **ATK: 1200/ DEF: 1400**_

" **Here we go. As much as I hate to admit it, this is all thanks to you!"**

" **I activate the spell card, 'Purifying Heart'!"**

Angelica gasped, she was frozen for a moment, at a loss for words, "Wait…! But that's…! There's no- you still kept it…?!"

'I can't believe she's had it for so long! I almost forgot about that card! And now she's using it against me! What in the world…?!''

" **Couldn't bring myself to toss it, my bad, so I just held onto it. Never thought I'd actually use it though, let alone in a duel against** _ **you**_ **. Things went full circle, didn't it?"**

"Can you guys fill us in?!" Jaden yelled, bothered by the lack of information they have about this, "We're kinda lost here!"

"Angelica, when did you give that card to her?" Aster questioned.

Said girl looked down, "A few years back, when I had started to understand a little more about the type of person Skotádi is. I had no idea about how close I was to her in my past lives yet, so it felt really uncomfortable when she'd say something to me. I had gotten past that stage where I was afraid of her, and was beginning in the 'hate' stage. But for some reason…I felt like she was important to me in some way, and I wanted to know her a lot more. I even told her about my passion for Duel Monsters. She had her own deck created beforehand, since she found out about the game before _I_ even knew about it. That's when…I gave her that card…"

* * *

*Flashback*

| "Hey…um…do you know about Duel Monsters…?"

" **It just so happens I do. I even have my own deck."**

"Really? If you don't mind me asking, what type of cards are they? Y-You don't have to answer..."

" **You still scared of me or something? I promise, I don't bite~"**

"I seriously doubt that…"

" **Anyway, my deck is full of Underworld cards, pretty much dark magic and demons from Hell."**

"Those cards exist?!"

" **Of course they didn't! They only exist because** _ **we**_ **do. Call it…a** _ **privilege**_ **."**

"Right…because of the whole 'immortal' thing…"

" **Correct. And I know your decks are built off of the four main elements, angels, and gods. Basically the opposite of mine."**

"Yeah, that's it…"

" **You wanna look through my cards?"**

"Wh-What?! N-No, I can't!"

" **You can. I'm giving you permission, if that's what you want."**

"Are you really sure…?"

" **What's the worse that can happen?"**

"...alright, sure…"

…

"Wow…some of these effects are…brutal."

" **That's what I love about it! It leaves no mercy for the opponent and the demons are always hungry for more flesh and blood!"**

"Okay…"

…

"Here."

" **What's this?"**

"It's a really effective card. There are some people out there who have the right cards to defend specifically against dark-attributes. I thought that this might be a useful card for you to avoid that…"

"' **Purifying Heart'...this really doesn't fit with my deck…not the mention the effect is kinda weird in a sense."**

"I know but…maybe this will help you…?"

" **...why are you giving me this? I thought you were afraid of me, and resented my ways of dealing with everything around you."**

"Well…yeah, I'm still freaked out over what you've done to my adopted family, and my school. There's no way I'll forget those times. It's just that…I feel like you mean more to me…like I've known you forever. It's just a feeling in my gut. So…I don't know…I wanted to give you something…"

' **Her mind doesn't have any memory of me…but a part of her heart does…? What kind of damn logic is that? Do I…really mean that much to her…?'**

"Hello…? A-Are you still in there…?"

" **I'm here, I'm here. I'll think about adding it to my deck."**

"I…hope it helps…"

" **Whatever. Oh and quit the polite act, it's getting on my nerves a little…"**

* * *

*Present*

"It was at a time where I thought she couldn't care less about anything. That's why I'm surprised you still have it, Skotádi."

" **I have my reasons."**

'I think it's more than just for her deck though…'

Korísatanikí stuck out her tongue in disgust, **"Stop with the cheesy shit, it's making me gag,"** she then looked at the card and smirked, **"looks like fate chose** _ **me**_ **to win this duel. With the card's effect, I can change one dark-attribute monster on my field into light-attribute. In addition, the monster's defense points increase by 300 and it's attack decreases by 200!"**

 _ **ATK: 1000/ DEF: 1600**_

A white, shining heart appeared in front of the demon wolf, covering it in light. A few seconds later, it looked like a completely different monster.

" **Now your monster won't be able to defend! 'Underworld's Predator', attack that light!"**

The wolf leaped onto the other side of the field, and with one hit, the monster was gone.

"AHH!"

Angelica was thrown back, hitting an invisible barrier, and falling to the ground.

 _ **Angelica: 350LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3100LP**_

"She's down to her last life points!" Alexis exclaimed, "And if that dragon's attack goes through, she'll lose the duel!"

"Wait, doesn't that mean we'll be stuck here?! Forever?!" Syrus panicked a lot more than before, he almost looked like he was gonna faint. He probably would.

Axel gritted his teeth, "Things aren't looking good, guys."

Angelica couldn't stand up yet, so she settled for sitting on the floor, looking at the dragon that seemed way taller in this point of view. She then glanced at Korísatanikí. Her eyes were full of uneasiness…and…fear? What was she afraid of? It wasn't visible on her face, but Angelica could see right through her. Somewhere deep in the demons heart, she didn't want to end this duel, because that would mean so many things. There might be a chance the consequence would be too great…for both of them. Korísatanikí _knew_ what would happen. And even though she went so far to accomplish her goal…now that it was right in front of her…she realized what it really meant. Angelica wouldn't be herself. The same, bubbly, forgiving, kind, and caring personality would be gone. And even though she'd never say it out loud, Korísatanikí grew attached to her naive decisions and her compassion.

Was she really gonna do it?

Yes…she had to…

…there was no turning back now.

…

Korísatanikí gulped, closed her eyes, and pointed directly at Angelica, **"'Underworld's Dragon'..."**

"… **attack Fos directly! NOW!"**

The dragon let out a sorrowful roar, and flew straight at the girl still on the floor.

…

"ANGELICA!"

…

' **I…did it…'**

' **I beat her…'**

…

' **I** _ **won**_ **…'**

' **Finally…after all these years…after all the shit I put her through…I—!'**

…

' **Wait…!'**

' **No…! There's no way…!'**

' **This can't be…!'**

' **But…'**

" **But how?! How did you…"**

" **...** _ **survive?!**_ **"**

* * *

/ _When darkness falls_ /

/ _Pain is all_ /

/ _The Angel of Darkness_ /

/ _Will leave behind_ /

/ _And I will…fight_ /

— "Angel of Darkness" by Alex Christensen

* * *

*Author's Note*

I feel kinda bad for doing a cliffhanger…sorry ;-;

Were some of these cards made on the spot? Well… _some_ of them were. Not _all_ the cards are mine! Please don't sue! Hopefully this fills up for the gap of time again…I don't know though. Writing out duels is a lot more time-consuming than you'd think, especially with horrible memory like mine. ._.

Next chapter is gonna be PACKED again! Oh and let me give you a small little peak/hint/tip…

You'll need tissues. It's sad.

Spring break is almost over, sucks to suck ;-;

Byyyeeee!


	18. Chapter 17

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 17**

You guys are _probably_ gonna hate me after this…

Jaden: Nah, they're gonna completely _despise_ you.

…thanks, I guess.

I don't own anything, except some of the cards used, the characters Angelica Rose, and Korísatanikí.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

 **WARNING!: TRIGGER WARNING AND MORE SAD! More character death too, wah ;-;**

Let's get riiighhhhtttt into the chapter!

* * *

/ _No fair_ /

/ _You really know how to make me cry_ /

/ _When you gimme those ocean eyes_ /

/ _I'm scared_ /

/ _I've never fallen from quite this high_ /

/ _Falling into your ocean eyes_ /

/ _Those ocean eyes_ /

— "Ocean Eyes" by Billie Eilish

* * *

*Void*

' **...but how?'**

' **How did she survive that attack?!'**

 _ **Angelica: 350LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3100LP**_

Angelica struggled to stand up, and once she did, she smiled a little, "I told you…I wasn't gonna lose this duel! You should've known I had something to block that!"

Everyone cheered, amazed at how she managed to dodge the seemingly instant loss. The only question was how it happened.

"When I played, 'Graceful Charity', one of the cards I discarded was the monster, 'Lefkó Guardian'. And its effect activates in the graveyard, which allows me banish it in order to negate one attack."

" **A monster effect from the graveyard…"** Korísatanikí muttered, **"should've seen that one coming."** To her surprise, she was a lot less angry and frustrated than expected. I mean, her chance of winning the duel this turn was gone now. Shouldn't she have been at least a little more… _upset_? Her emotions at the moment were confusing as hell, so much so that she stared at nothing for a solid minute.

Angelica waved, trying to grab the demon's gaze, "Hello! Skotádi, what are you thinking? It's still your turn!"

Korísatanikí slightly jumped, pulling herself together sloppily, **"That's…that's the end of my turn…"**

||Did you see that?|| Yubel inquired, ||Korísatanikí looked shaken up about something. Apparently her mindset towards this duel isn't the most organized. Her thoughts are scattered everywhere, with them agreeing and disagreeing with the others.||

"Does she still want to win the duel then?" Jaden asked, confused and shocked at the spirit's statement, "Is the pressure getting to her and this doesn't seem right anymore?"

||I'd say that's a good guess.||

Korísatanikí could clearly hear the conversation taking place, and as much as she'd love to _strangle_ them…now wasn't exactly the right time. Angelica was thinking of something big, she could feel it through their connection. But what could the girl possibly do with an almost empty hand _and_ field?

It would for sure take a damn miracle.

"I draw!"

…

"The card I just drew is 'Pure Healer', which means I can banish it in order to gain 1000 life points and draw two more cards!"

 _ **Angelica: 1350LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 3100LP**_

…

She placed her two fingers on the deck, 'I need something… _anything_ to turn the tables and _win_! I'm betting everything into this draw…

…

...the entire world is depending on it…'

…

Aster shut his eyes tight, 'I believe in you, Angelica…we all do!'

Jaden held his breath, 'Come on, Angelica…I know you can do this…'

Jesse bit his lip slightly, 'This is it…'

…

* * *

*Flashback*

| **"You mind explaining to me how the** _ **fuck**_ **you pulled that off with** _ **one**_ **draw?!"**

"Well…it's not that hard…"

" **Go on!"**

"I had enough hope. My heart was in the right place, I knew exactly what I wanted and why. That duel wasn't completely for fun, was it? That kid was being horribly bullied for liking Duel Monsters, so I decided to beat the bullies with the thing they made fun of him for. I believed that I could help him, and my cards responded!"

" **...you really expect me to believe** _ **that**_ **?"**

"I don't. I'm just telling you what I think of it. If fate is guiding us right now, one of my many purposes here is to be a guardian for those who need it. To be a light of hope for those who'd lost it, just like I had a long time ago."

" **...well…didn't think I'd hear any less from you…you've already found your purpose here, and that should be enough."**

"What about you? Do you know what _your_ purpose here is, and why you were made? You know, _other_ than torturing me everyday with your existence?"

" **Ouch, that hurt."**

"...sorry, too harsh?"

" **Hey, you should practice that! It'll get rid of those annoying older kids who think they're the shit!"**

"How about…no."

" **But I wanna see that!"**

"No."

" **You're no fun~!"**

…

"...So are you gonna answer me or what? Do you know what's _your_ purpose here?"

" **..."**

"Wait…you don't—?"

" **It's complicated! Your fate is tied with mine, unless I can find a way to manipulate it in one way or another! All I know is I'm here to make you fall into a state of darkness, like how your father wants you to be!"**

"I don't want to follow his lead! And neither should you! Are you really going to take away all my hope and light just because some thousand year old prophecy or destiny told you to?! My father controlled what happened at my birth, just like you said! We weren't supposed to be doing this! _You_ aren't supposed to be doing this! Don't you understand?!"

" **...I'm leaving…"**

"We are _not_ done he—!"

" **I said I'm** _ **leaving**_ **!"**

…

* * *

*Present*

'This card…!'

Korísatanikí tensed up, feeling the strong energy radiating from the other side. She couldn't pinpoint what the card was, but something about it was _very_ dangerous to her. The way Angelica's eyes lit up with surprise and overflowing relief made the demon even more of a reason to be anxious.

Angelica smiled, 'One shot. I can only use this once…'

"By banishing 'Fotiá the Fire Goddess', 'Neró the Water Goddess', 'Gisa the Earth Goddess', 'Aéras the Wind Goddess', as well as four light-attribute monsters from my deck or graveyard, I can summon the ultimate deity!"

A bright light illuminated the void, making the empty world around them almost come to life right before their eyes. The four chosen for tribute disappeared into the beam, and the fire left was now gone, replaced with golden flowers.

"As she gives the light of life, the light of hope, and the light for all existing elements, all shall be blessed by her appearance! For she has control over what makes this world bright!"

"Control over fire, water, earth, air, and the light present within, she has power over all!"

"The Goddess Parthelya!"

The beautiful elegant and mature women formed, and _wow_. Just one look at her you already know she's _very_ special. Her eyes held so much wisdom, softness, and sympathy at the same time. They were almost pure white with tints of very light aquamarine, her clothing white and gold to fit. Her large wings batted against the air, and the multi-colored necklace hung loosely around her neck.

 _ **ATK: 3200/ DEF: 2800**_

" **It…it really is her…!"** Korísatanikí was struck. And not because she'd never seen her before, it's the fact Angelica had brought her here to _begin_ with that was shocking.

"Holy crap…!" Chazz breathed, "There's literally no other card like this!"

As Aster kept staring at the new goddess, his gaze fell towards Angelica. He noticed the longing and sad look in her eyes, as if she had been reminded of something.

"Angelica," Aster called, gaining the girl's attention," does this card…mean anything to you?"

She smiled, "It does, actually. It means a lot. This card shows such a strong resemblance to…my mother…"

"Your mother?!" Most of the others exclaimed, except for the two in the duel.

" **Fos had mentioned her mother is a goddess, but it's almost impossible to communicate so easily from here. Even with our power, they've made sure contact from human world cannot be reached by** _ **any**_ **means. So…we haven't seen her at all. Sometimes I even forget what she looks like…"**

"I don't remember much," Angelica added, "but I know she did her best to try and protect me when she could. I know that she'd still think about me, because she cares. So for now…I have this card to remind me of her."

…

| "Your mother was the considerate one, young goddess. She has the heart of a maiden. Her wishes for your future will never change. You may not understand now, as an infant can only take so much. But soon, her hopes will reach you. And when that time comes, the light will illuminate your way, for you will choose a bright and beautiful path. May the glimmering stars of fate be ever above you." |

…

Angelica had changed the subject, close to winning the duel, "I activate one of her effects! All spell and trap cards can not be used until the end of my turn!"

One of the cards in Korísatanikí's hand glowed white, while she cursed under her breath.

"One more thing. If I banished all four element goddesses to summon her…"

"…half of their attack points get transferred to Parthelya!"

 _ **ATK: 8400/ DEF: 2800**_

"8400 attack points?!" Everyone was beyond stunned. Just that ability alone gave her a _huge_ advantage. One attack from that goddess and it would be game over for Korísatanikí, guaranteed.

"My god…!" Jaden breathed, "None of the duels I had against her were _anything_ like this!"

"This…" Alexis whispered, "This is crazy…"

"She actually got a monster with that much attack points…" Aster said, "and with little life points. That's what I call a comeback. Angelica's amazing…!"

Staring at the powerful goddess, reality struck. The duel was hers for the taking, and nothing the demon can do would change that.

" **...looks like your 'technique' worked,"** Korísatanikí replied with a weak chuckle, **"and apparently your the favored one. I can't do anything. All of my spells and traps are useless right now, and Parthelya's attack is** _ **much**_ **greater than my dragon's…"**

The walls surrounding her heart were faltering. Coming to terms with what was about to happen once Angelica called the attack, it was more than her not completing her 'job'. It was a _lot_ more than that. She had realized by now that…

…she failed.

But…was it really for the worst?

She closed her eyes for a second, her lip was trembling, **"But…but I don't understand…why did you have to do this to yourself…?"**

"You should know by now…" Angelica smiled, "I care about you, Skotádi. I always have. You've gotten me through a lot of things, more than I can count. I mean, I've known you for as long as I've been on this world. And I know you're not completely used to being given so much affection…but I want to make you realize what you've been doing wrong this whole time."

" **I…!"** Korísatanikí covered her mouth, **"I don't…I don't know…I just don't deserve this. I don't deserve** _ **any**_ **of this. I've put you through so much shit…things you shouldn't have gone through. I saw you in pain and I didn't do anything to stop it!"**

Angelica's eyes softened, "I know. But you were dealing with mixed feelings about everything, and I can't blame you for it. I always knew there was a part of you who didn't want to do any of that. We were both trapped…trapped in this endless cycle of pain, sorrow and darkness. It's about time…"

"...I set us both free…"

…

* * *

/ _And it's a long way forward, so trust in me_ /

/ _I'll give them shelter, like you've done for me_ /

/ _And I know, I'm not alone, you'll be watching over us_ /

/ _Until you're gone_ /

— "Shelter" by Porter Robinson & Madeon

* * *

…

" **Y-You…know what this means…right…?"**

Angelica's eyes were now filled with sadness, "Yeah…I do."

She truly did.

And it was one of the hardest decisions she ever had to make. She knew what the result would bring. Sacrifices were to be made. But if it meant nobody would get hurt…if it meant she couldn't harm the ones she loved or anyone else because of their curse…

Then it was worth the cost.

She gulped, clenched her fists, and took in a deep breath, "Goddess Parthelya, it's finally time to end this! Call on your divine power so together we may beat the darkness! Break the chains that bind us to our torturous destiny, and grant us a new future for us to embrace!"

This was the final attack.

Hesitation and fear lingered in Angelica's mind, as strong winds were blowing. Can she really do this?

"Do it, Angelica!"

"Beat that demon and win!"

"End this duel!"

…

' **Go ahead, Fos…I can take it. You promised to set us free, didn't you?'**

…

Of course. That's a promise she will fulfill right now. Not just for them, but for everyone else with them right now. Her friends, the people she considered family. And Aster.

This was all for them.

"Goddess Parthelya, attack the dragon! Take away all of Skotádi's life points and put this battle to an end!"

…

…

It was done.

…

* * *

 _ **Angelica: 350LP**_

 _ **Korísatanikí: 0LP**_

…

Everyone was silent for a moment, still taking in what had occurred.

"She…she did it…" Aster's open mouth quickly turned into a big grin, "Angelica won!"

This made the rest burst into a loud cheer fest. I mean, that was a _really_ close match. Syrus had been _very_ relieved that they wouldn't be staying in that place for much longer. He had even gotten weak to the knees and fell forward a little. Chazz had to quickly catch him before he hit the ground -if there even _was_ a ground-, "Man, you're so dramatic."

"You're one to talk." Jaden laughed, getting a glare from the other.

Syrus got up again, stumbling a little from embarrassment. Hassleberry went behind him, "Easy, Truesdale. You looking a little red there."

" _Thanks_. You didn't have to point that out!"

"Just saying."

Atticus rolled his eyes, "What are you three, in second grade?" Alexis shook her head.

"They sure do act like it."

Axel had been the only one staying completely still, keeping his gaze at where Angelica and Korísatanikí…well… _were_ supposed to be, "Does anyone have an idea as to why there's just a ball of light sitting at the middle of the flower field? And how did the area get 'repaired' anyway?"

This made them all look, and sure enough, a large ball of light was placed right in the middle. Seeing as the two who had just finished the duel were nowhere to be found, it was obvious they were inside.

"Well ain't that strange," Jim said, "I think it appeared when the girl won. Something must've triggered it."

"There was a bit of an uneasy feeling coming from Angelica," Bastion mused, "she looked a bit anxious. What could have caused that?"

"Guys…" Alexis mumbled, "I've got a _bad_ feeling about this…"

Aster now had the stamina to stand on his own, so Jaden and Jesse let him go, allowing him to slowly walk towards the sphere of light. He had this disturbing feeling in his gut, as if something was going on that he should be concerned for.

'I hope you're okay…'

* * *

*Inside the Sphere*

Korísatanikí was looking through the memories they shared. All the times where they talked like real friends. All the times they bickered. And…when she had controlled parts of Angelica's life to corrupt her. Looking back at it now…it was stupid of her.

" **Why the hell did I do this stuff to you…?"** The demon looked away, shutting her eyes, **"I'm a horrible excuse for a friend. Not to mention all those things I made you do."**

"It…it wasn't all bad," Angelica put a hand on the other's shoulder, making their eyes meet, "yeah those times were really painful, but I learned a lot of things from it. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't be the person I am today. In my heart I know you had never taken the time to understand your feelings. You weren't 'allowed' to accept your own emotions. I can't hold it against you."

" **That's what amazes me about you, Fos…"** Korísatanikí faintly replied, **"The fact that your so** _ **forgiving**_ **. I really don't think I deserve a second chance. But…if this helps…"**

She hugged Angelica, **"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you so much! Taking away your light would be horrible! I never told you that I consider you my best friend, too! You're my soul counterpart, and there's nothing anyone can say to convince me otherwise!"**

The girl hugged back, "I'll always be your best friend, Skotádi. And I'm glad you've finally managed to express yourself."

" **I…I can't give you back what you gave up, though!"** Korísatanikí shouted, **"Nothing can replace that!"**

Angelica looked down, "Of course not…but this was also to save them, too. So…"

The demon looked through the sphere, seeing everyone waiting patiently and nervously. She sighed, **"They're all still there…"**

"I'll…" Angelica tried swallowing the lump in her throat, "I'll try and…tell them…"

With that, the sphere began to dissolve, exposing themselves.

* * *

"There they are!" Jesse exclaimed happily.

Korísatanikí awkwardly stepped back, fidgeting a little with her outfit. Her wings closed and she looked down at the floor.

They all ran up to the two, immediately surrounding Angelica. Aster pulled the girl in a bear hug, happiness and relief flooding from him, "You scared me half to death, you realize that?! But right now, I'm just so glad you're okay!"

"I knew you'd win!" Jaden exclaimed excitedly, "That comeback was so sick!"

"The way you summoned Parthelya was awesome!" Syrus also cheered.

"Ya really outdid yourself today!" Jesse patted Angelica on the shoulder.

"Hate to admit it, but that _was_ cool to watch," Chazz said, "a powerful card like that will get you into the pro leagues in a second."

"One of the most intense battles I've witnessed so far!" Hassleberry added.

Unknowingly, Yubel had stayed in spirit form, and watched the group from afar. She then glanced at Korísatanikí, noticing her uncomfortable stance. So she floated towards her, and…strangely enough…started examining her from different angles.

" **What are you doing…?"** Korísatanikí cautiously asked, stepping back even more. Yubel kept curiously staring at her noticeable features.

||Oh nothing, just seeing a few things…|| she replied innocently. After a few more weird seconds, she stopped and smirked a little, ||Between you and me, you're pretty interesting to learn about. You've got a whole Underworld deck that was very intriguing, add to that your whole demon appearance. Those monsters, spells, and trap cards are really unique, too. You mind telling me more about it once we're back?||

Korísatanikí had never been…what was the right way to put this…looked as something _interesting_ before, at least not by anyone other than Angelica. So this was an entirely new encounter she had just discovered. But, that was quickly covered with the thought that…

…they _couldn't_ go back.

" **Uh…about that…"** She muttered, turning her head the other way. Yubel blinked in confusion, but saw the distressed look on the demon's face, and went closer.

||What do you mean by that?|| Yubel inquired, ||Is there something you're not mentioning to any of us?||

" **It's not my place to say,"** Korísatanikí blurted, **"I'm not the one who's supposed to tell you right now."**

The spirit wanted to ask for more details, but went back beside Jaden instead. She kept quiet, since whatever the other was talking about must have been crucial. Might as well wait and see.

Aster stole a glance at Korísatanikí, noticing her a good distance away. He didn't say anything to the others, but simply walked up to her, leaving them confused and bewildered.

Korísatanikí couldn't even look him directly in the eye. She sighed, **"If you wanna punch me or something as revenge, go ahead. I won't stop you."**

"Despite all the crap you put us through, that's not really what I had in mind," Aster replied, "from what I've been told, you were pretty much robbed of the ability to label your own feelings. Can't stay mad at you forever anyway. Angelica cares a lot about you, even calling you her best friend. I can't forget what you've done, but I can give you the benefit of the doubt. We…didn't meet on _good_ terms, so I'd like to start over."

The demon looked at the boy as if he were insane, **"You're serious?"** She _expected_ to be yelled at, kicked a few times even. If anything, he probably wouldn't have bothered going _near_ her. So why was he insisting on starting over?

"Completely."

Aster held out a hand, a small smile forming. Angelica was in the back, proud of the scene that was taking place. She communicated with Korísatanikí telepathically, 'Go on.'

' **Wait, what?!'**

'He's forgiving you, don't leave him hanging.'

' **Did you put him up to this?!'**

'Not really.'

' **Fucking hell…Fos, you're impossible!'**

'Don't be like that. He wants to start over, just as he said.'

' **Wow…this is actually happening.'**

'Better believe it.'

Korísatanikí, after another second of doubt, grabbed Aster's hand and shook it, the end of her mouth twitching forming a little smile. She hadn't felt this relieved in a _long_ time, to be honest.

Jaden beamed, waving his arm to get their attention, "We're cool, too!"

Jesse chuckled, "Just don't go puttin' curses on us, 'kay?"

' **...is this what it's like to have friends…?'**

Her smile grew wider unintentionally. She'd been missing out on a lot of things by being cooped up in Angelica's conscious most of the time. She should've spent more time learning from her experiences with her as they went along. The maybe she'd have known what was missing in her own life. If only time traveling was possible.

Jaden stretched, still grinning, "Well, now that that's over, I'd like to go back to Duel Academy and have some lunch!"

"Same here!" Jesse agreed, "I reckon we leave this place already! Still givin' me the creeps!"

"Ha, no kidding!"

Angelica and Korísatanikí froze. Their eyes widened. It felt like a huge amount of weight was put on their hearts, and suddenly their stomach churned. It hit them. It hit them hard, but no one had noticed yet.

Syrus's eyes lit up as he looked across from them, "Hey, look! It's another portal! That must lead us back!"

Through the portal they can vaguely see the forest area, or more specifically, an open land area with trees surround them.

"What are we waiting for then?" Chazz began walking towards the portal, "The Chazz needs his rest, you know." Even after that, his ego still hasn't changed.

Alexis put a head on her forehead, "And I need a break from _you_." Chazz gave a huff, crossing his arms. He still looked over to make sure the rest would follow.

Aster went to Angelica, "Let's go back and put all of this behind us, shall we?" Oh, little did he know…

He grabbed her hand, expecting the girl to start walking as well…

…but she didn't move.

…

She didn't want to right now…

She stayed still, eyes glued to the floor. Aster's worry started kicking in, "Angelica, what's wrong?" He stepped in front, putting his other hand on her shoulder. Because of this, he could feel the other trembling, and although it wasn't bad, it was still unnatural. Angelica didn't say a word.

"Hey, talk to me," Aster leaned in, "is there something you want to say?" By this point, everyone else had grown concerned, too. They anxiously watched from behind what was happening. Korísatanikí felt waves of guilt sweep through, also feeling her counterpart's endless sorrow, reminding herself how much she _royally_ screwed up.

Before Aster could ask again, he heard a faint reply from Angelica, softer than a whisper, "Can you say it again?"

"I…can't…"

"Angelica, please just tell me."

That's when Aster saw it. Tears rolling down her cheeks. And now her body was shaking as quiet sobs escaped through her mouth. Was she trying to hold it in? And what was so bad it made her feel this horrible?!

"What the…why are you crying?! What happened?!"

"I CAN'T GO BACK!"

Her sobs were heard by everyone now, she couldn't control it. Aster didn't fully understand, though. He had a hunch but…no…that couldn't be it, right? There was absolutely _no_ way that could happen, "Go back…?"

Angelica buried her face in Aster's shoulder, crying her heart out. She couldn't bring herself to say it, thinking about it was painful enough as it is. Korísatanikí knew she had to break it to them.

" **We…we can't leave with you guys. In a few moments, our time will end and…we'll disappear. I lost the duel, and this is the consequence that I have to share with her…"**

They were all stuck. Aster tried comprehending what he had just been told. They had cut right to the chase, but that meant he had to take everything in at once.

"Wait…no…no way…"

He turned to the demon, "This…this is a joke, right…?" He choked, " _Please_ tell me this is some stupid prank…!" He _refused_ to believe this. They came all this way, they had gone through all of that…!

It just couldn't end like this!

Korísatanikí felt tears brimming in her eyes, **"I'm sorry…"** her voice was laced with guilt, regret, and pain, **"But…we're two halves of one whole. Which means…if one of us is gone…the other can't exist. I'm** _ **really**_ **sorry, Aster."** Saying his name, and the tone of her voice, showed that she _wasn't_ kidding.

This was real.

The rest had heard that. But it simply was hard to believe. They had gotten so far, too! The whole point of this was to let _everyone_ go on without anymore of what had occurred these past weeks! And now…the two were _not_ coming?!

"That's…!" Jaden paused, trying to keep himself from messing up his wording, "I can't believe this…!" Jesse swallowed hard, keeping himself composed as well.

Aster pulled Angelica as close as possible to him, afraid to let her go. Tears were forming in his eyes, too, "B-But…I'm not ready! I'm not ready to let you go, Angelica! I _need_ you! I need you here with me! I don't think I'm anything without you! You mean _so_ much to me, more than you can ever know! It's just…it's too early for this…!"

Yubel's eyes softened, also looking across the group. They were all feeling some sense of sadness within them, not only because Aster was shown like this, but because they'd all liked Angelica very much. She was a really good friend, after all, even if she hadn't been with them for as long. The spirit could see the sorrow in their eyes, Jaden and Jesse's especially. She glanced back at Korísatanikí.

||And you're positive there's no way to prevent this?||

" **I…"** The other shut her eyes, shamefully looking the other way, **"I really wish there was. This is all my fault…I took Fos away from everyone…!"** She put a hand on her face, **"I'm such a fucking idiot..."**

Silence followed, with only the sounds of Angelica's crying being heard. There wasn't much to say. Fate apparently has its own way of ruining hopes. But why was _this_ their future? What had they done?!

' **...shit.'**

All those people. All those people who had been sent to be tortured endlessly. All those innocent kids who had their future stolen at the school. Everyone who had fallen victim to the demon's merciless actions. Everyone who had gone because of _both_ of them. Was…

Was this the punishment they had to take?

…

…

…

Speaking of which…

A portal manifested in the air, right on the 'ceiling'. It was a rather large portal, they couldn't see anything on the other side. There was shadows mixed with light, ironically. Angelica and Korísatanikí exchanged looks. They knew what was about to happen. From the distant feel in their eyes for a minute, they seemed to be conversing through thought. Korísatanikí then went up to the couple, a smile still on her face. She touched Angelica's shoulder, causing shadows to go around her and disappear. After that, she then turned to the others.

" **I can never take back what I did in the past, whether it be in this timeline or another one. I don't deserve forgiveness, but I'm still grateful for yours. Thanks for being there for Fos when I couldn't be bothered to. But…guess it's my time to go."**

She made eye contact with Aster, **"I gave her a few more minutes. So you have extra time to say anything you want to right now. Again, thank you for looking out for her."**

Shadow tentacles emerged from the portal, wrapping around her legs and torso. She spread her demon wings, taking flight. To be honest…she was gonna miss the group. Most of the conversations she overheard being in Angelica's conscious were really fun to listen to. They were great people in general.

With one more glance back at everyone, and a sort-of salute with her hand, the tentacle tugged her in the portal.

With that…she was gone.

And now…

…

…

Angelica cupped Aster's cheek, "You have _no_ idea how lucky I am to have come here, to have met everyone. I don't regret a _single_ thing. I'm so happy to have had you in my life, every minute we were together."

"S-Stop!" Aster cried, "Don't talk like that! I can't live without you!"

"Aster, listen to me," Angelica said soothingly, even though her heart was breaking at the sight, "I need you to promise me something…"

Alexis couldn't even look anymore. Jim pulled his hat down, while Chazz clenched his fists in frustration. He was mad that they couldn't do anything to prevent this.

"Angelica…" Jaden whispered, closing his eyes for a moment so he could form he words, tears in his eyes now, too, "Don't go!" He couldn't help it. This wasn't right. After those battles, she deserved to stay, to live!

||Jaden,|| Yubel put a transparent hand on his shoulder, ||You know this is going to happen. We can't anything about it.||

"I know, but…it's not fair!"

||We have to accept it the way it is, whether it's fair or not. Sometimes people need to be let go.||

…

"Aster…" Angelica took in a shaky breath, "Promise me…you won't let this get in the way of your life. You have such a bright future ahead of you, and I don't want to ruin it."

"Angelica I c—!"

" _Please_. I know you can be happy, even…even if I'm not physically there. I'll always be in your heart, Aster. I just need to make sure you can move on. It doesn't matter if it takes weeks, months…I just want you to live life to the fullest."

"I…"

He had wanted to be with her. To be with her for the rest of their lives. But now she's being taken away by some stupid rule of fate. There was no way he'd be able to completely move on. He wouldn't find anyone else. In his eyes, Angelica was someone who stood out, with her pure eyes that sparkled like the thousands of stars in the sky, and her soft voice that he just loved hearing so much. Truly, she was an angel. But this angel didn't deserve this, not at all!

…

After more dreadful silence, Aster slowly nodded without a word. This made Angelica smile. The two stayed in the hug, holding onto each other for what remaining time they had left. Aster felt the need to tell her everything while they had the chance.

"Angelica, from the moment I saw you…I had felt things I thought I would never feel. Just seeing your happy smile made my day. I wanted to make you _truly_ happy, because I know you've been forcing it for so long. And…I'm…I'm so happy to have your heart…! I'll never forget your laugh, your beautiful eyes, the sound of your voice…I'll never forget you! I…I love you so much…!"

"I-I…I love you, too, Aster…!"

With pained and tear-filled eyes, they shared one last tender kiss. They wouldn't forget. They could _never_ forget.

Nothing would take their memory of each other away.

Nothing would get rid of their love.

Light came from the portal. String-like ribbons had stretched out, slowly wrapping around Angelica's body. The two separated from the kiss, with the girl looking down at the ribbon with understanding. Aster knew as well. It was going to happen.

The ribbon began to pull, with Angelica showing no resistance. She simply let it go. Even though she knew what this meant, she smiled. She wanted them to remember her leaving with a smile on her face.

Their hands pulled apart, with Aster attempting to reach her one last time. But it wasn't possible.

A bright light illuminated the void, it was so blinding nobody was able to see. They all had to cover their eyes, and had no idea what was going on. But the last thing they heard was Angelica…a line so simple, but it held so much meaning. So much emotion was put into it…that there was no need for anything else…

"...Everyone…

… _thank you_."

* * *

…

…

…

"...Ugh…my head…"

"...My _everything_ …"

"...Where are we…?"

"...Guys! Hey guys!"

"Damn…you really gotta yell…?"

"We're back! We're actually back!"

"What? Seriously?!"

"Holy crap, you're right! We're back at Duel Academy!"

"About time! I was gettin' tired of seeing literally darkness everywhere!"

"Doesn't that mean…?"

"So it's over then?"

"We won! We really won!"

Everyone started cheering. Relief of getting out had made them completely oblivious to someone who had kneeled down towards something, not having uttered a single word. They also hadn't noticed Yubel looking solemnly at them. After a moment, Jaden was the first to see this.

"Yubel? What's with that face? We won, didn't we?"

||...Did we, really?||

"...Huh?"

||Yes, we won the battle, but…we had paid a large price…something that can't be returned…||

"Yubel, what are you—!"

He stopped mid-sentence, memories hitting him like a truck. Everything was becoming even more clear. That blinding light, or something else, had made them unconscious. And once they woke up, they had been too riled up about the fact they were back to realize what really happened back there.

"Oh god…"

"Jay?" Jesse noticed the boy tense up, his face becoming pale.

"She's…gone…" Jaden said softly, a sad expression visible, "Angelica…we lost her…"

Everyone was too shocked to move. Hearing that also made them suddenly remember. A feeling of dread rushed through them. That's right…she had beat Korísatanikí in a duel, and in doing so…

"She's really gone…?" Syrus asked. Though nobody wanted to answer that. They already knew. Maybe…maybe it would've been better if they _didn't_ find out. Alexis turned to find a silver haired boy on his knees, holding something in his hand.

"Hey…isn't that…?" As she said this, the others' gaze was set on him.

"Aster…"

What were they supposed to do? This…wasn't the first time he'd lost a loved one, after all. For it to repeat, with the girl he cherished with his _life_ leaving…they couldn't possibly imagine what he was going through right now.

Jaden and Jesse looked at each other, before slowly walking towards him. The brunette spoke up, "Aster…?"

He didn't reply.

The other boy peered over his shoulder to see what he was looking at, and he couldn't contain the slight gasp that came out of him. Curious, Jesse also glanced over, which caused the same reaction. What Aster was holding…

They were fragments of jewels. And just by looking at them, it was obvious as to where they came from.

Blue pieces, green pieces, white pieces, red pieces…and even large black pieces…

They were Angelica's gems.

The ones on her bracelet…and what's left of her necklace.

||When she left…these must have been left behind. Her and Korísatanikí had disappeared from the universe all together, so…these had no reason to stay in tact.||

"It's all that's left of her…" Jaden whispered.

'What do we do? Do we…say something? Or—!'

"I…promised her…"

Jaden was a bit startled from the broken silence. He stepped a little closer, and ended up kneeling next to the other in order to be able to hear, "What...?"

"...I-I promised Angelica that…I'd try and move on…that I'd be able to go on forward without her here…but I…!" He brought the jewels close to his chest, his whole body shaking, "I can't…I can't bring myself to let her go…!"

"Aster…"

Jaden hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder, "It's okay. You two…were really special to each other, so…it's okay to feel this way. Just…take your time." He was doing the best he could to make the situation a _little_ better, especially for Aster. But…well that was nearly impossible.

The boy kept sobbing, clutching the jewels close to his heart. Everyone else could only watch, and hear the amount of despair in him. They could only wait.

With that, the day had come to an end. Crowler hadn't been too happy with their sudden disappearence, which was easily covered up with a fake story. The group had barely said a word. Even after going back, even after the night had arrived…

Time seemed to only pass by slower.

* * *

/ _But nothing is better sometimes_ /

/ _Once we've all said our goodbyes_ /

/ _Let's just let it go_ /

/ _Let me let you go_ /

— "when the party's over" by Billie Eilish

* * *

*Author's Note*

HOLD YOUR HORSES CAUSE THIS AIN'T THE LAST CHAPTER!(Believe it or not)

Y'all still got to go through a few more! We're almost there!

I sound like Jesse…

Jesse: HUH?!

I didn't say anything!

*sigh* I almost died again…ANYWHO I'm on summer break so hell yeah! I kinda wish we had more than two months...but whadya gonna do?

Again, most of the cards mentioned are ones that I made up, they don't _actually_ exist(I wish they did, though, that would be really cool to see). Do they sound overpowered? Cause I'm not too sure. I know the chapters are slacking a lot…I'm sorry about that…;-;

But hey! On the bright side having my WiFi down for a long time gave me more of a reason to work on these chapters! Now that I have it back, I can post them!

See yah next chapter!

Byyyeeee!


	19. Chapter 18

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 18**

Boom! Next chapter here we GOOOOOO!

For some reason I'm more high than usual and I don't care! Now my grammar is shit! Hahahahahah-okay my head hurts.

;-; Imma wallow in misery in the corner of my room and contemplate all my life decisions k thx.

I don't own anything except Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, Khartai, and Taylor!

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

No warning this time! Just gotta read!

Aster: …..

Aaaand…you're still not saying anything. Damn was it that bad? *sigh* Alrighty, we're starting!

Chapter 18….action!

* * *

/ _But you'll never be alone_ /

/ _I'll be with you from dusk till dawn_ /

/ _I'll be with you from dusk till dawn_ /

/ _Baby I'm right here_ /

— "Dusk Till Dawn" by ZAYN ft. Sia

* * *

*Two weeks later*

For the first few days, confusion sparked across the Ra Yellow Dorms. Two people from their rank had suddenly disappeared, after all. Also, some of the students in Obelisk Blue had been questioning the absence of Khartai. The group hadn't really thought about a way to keep the whole 'fighting demons' thing under wraps. So, they turned to Chancellor Sheppard, and ended up having to explain the entire event to him. He took every detail into consideration, upset that three students from Duel Academy had been…deceased.

Since Bastion and Syrus were the ones from Ra Yellow, it was up to them to tell the fake story. This was so they could prevent any unnecessary things happening with certain students getting curious. Simply, they said Angelica had left the island for an emergency along with Taylor. Since the two were seen hanging out with the girl, it was believable. Alexis had told people in Obelisk Blue that Khartai was needed somewhere else, which they bought easily. With that all three of them had a reason for not being there.

That wasn't really an issue. The real issue was the impact the whole thing had left on the group themselves. Aster, to be exact. After everything, he'd gone back to his yacht, and hadn't come out since. When they had called him before, he told them he was fine. But from the tiredness and sadness in his voice, they could tell he clearly _wasn't_ fine. Even so, everyone thought it would be best to let him have some time. They just didn't know it would be two weeks.

Loss does many things to people, doesn't it?

Right now, they were gathered at the Slifer Red Dorms, the usual meeting place. Talking things over once in a while was their way of trying to move things along. They couldn't say it _worked_ …but at least they weren't distant. Axel was the first to speak.

"Anything new from Aster?"

They all shook their heads. Chazz leaned back against the seat, "Two weeks and still nothing. Starting to think he'll never come out."

"Can you blame him?" Alexis said, "Remember, Angelica meant the _world_ to him. Besides, he's already lost his father in the past. Having to lose someone else you love is horrible."

"Wish we could do somethin' to help a little," Jesse sighed, "I feel bad for the guy."

"So do I," Jaden replied, "but right now, he needs more time alone. I don't think it's easy to move past something like this. We just need to wait and hope for the best."

||That's right,|| Yubel appeared, agreeing with what the other said, ||expecting him to ignore his own feelings isn't going to help. He needs to be by himself and sort out his thoughts and emotions. And when he's ready, he'll come out.||

Silence followed. This same conversation had been spoken for more times than they had wanted. They _could've_ done something else, like duel, but the atmosphere was too gray. Nobody was going to have much fun. It seemed as though another uneventful day was going to pass by.

…That's what everyone had thought at first.

But then…the unthinkable happened, one after another.

Miracles…accidents…forces of fate…whatever they want to be called.

It became real.

…

Bastion took a quick glance at the room, then at the wall clock, "Shouldn't we be going to class? Let's not be late."

"You're right," Jaden reluctantly got up, "but it wouldn't kill them to give us some more breaks…"

"What're you talkin' about?" Jesse chuckled, "You get your 'breaks' every time you knock out in class! Don't think I don't know about it!"

"I've been trying to do that less, okay?! Is it too late to catch up?!"

"After, like, two years?"

"Jesse!"

As their small argument continued, the rest were watching in amusement as the two ended up headlocking each other, laughing and smiling like dorks. Syrus shook his head, "I'll never understand them."

"What _is_ there to understand?" Chazz replied, "They got their own weird way of…I don't even know what."

Some things don't change.

After the… _strange_ exchange had taken place, they were ready to go to class.

Now…no one, _no one_ , was expecting what was about to come. They had never thought this would happen. But…again, they were reminded…

…that the impossible _is_ possible.

…

*CRASH*

The whole room shook after a large bang was heard, startling them all and making them almost lose their balance.

"Wh-What the heck?!"

"Is it an earthquake?!"

"What are the odds of that happening here?!"

"Get under the tables! Now!"

…

After the 'earthquake' ended, they got up, and looked at each other in bewilderment and confusion. They can't remember the last time they experienced an earthquake. Given how long they've been there, rarely was there any natural disasters. The shaking didn't last long, either, only for a good fifteen seconds or so.

"Now what was _that_ all about?!" Atticus exclaimed.

"Please tell me we're not the only ones who felt that!" Alexis said.

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't an earthquake," Jim stated, "that sound from before might have somethin' to do with it."

"Why are we standing here then?!" As Jaden yelled this out, he ran out the door, trying to look for the source of the loud bang. The rest followed, searching around the building, over the cliff, and down where the ocean was. Nothing was out of place. Everything looked normal.

As they were done scouting, some voices were heard, coming from the forest.

"Oww! Think I got brain damage…!"

"That could've been worse…"

"Did our landing have to be that hard?!"

"We're here, aren't we?"

"Yeah but that hurt my fucking head!"

"At least we didn't break any bones."

"I'm sure I lost my brain cells…"

"Heh, you didn't have any to spare anyway."

"You know wh- hey!"

"Look at that, it's the whole gang."

As the two arguing revealed themselves, everyone was greatly shocked. They were at a loss of words for a moment. The ones who had shown up weren't ghosts. They weren't hallucinations, nor were they holograms.

"I'm not the only seeing this…right?" Syrus asked slowly.

"Nope…!" Alexis shook his head, "They're definitely standing right there…"

Not even Yubel imagined this happening, so she experienced the same surprise as them.

The two who were standing right in front of them…

Khartai…and Taylor.

They were here.

And, surprisingly, _alive_.

The magenta haired girl laughed, "You all look like you've seen a ghost, what's up with that?"

"What the hell?!" Chazz shouted, "We thought you guys were dead! We saw you disappear right on the ground! You can't just show up and act like nothing happened!"

"Calm down," Taylor said, "yeah we technically died, but some crazy shit happened after. It's a _really_ long story, and right now is not storytime."

"Save all your questions for later," Khartai continued, "cause there's something you all need to see."

Now they were all confused, but curious at the same time.

"Is this another trick?" Axel asked, "You're not exactly known for being truthful, just putting it out there."

Khartai sighed, "You don't need to remind us. But I promise you, we're over that."

Taylor nodded, "This isn't a trick, it's for real. I have a feeling you'll like it, too. Especially…" He examines everyone present, then crossed his arms, "Wow, of all the days he doesn't show up. You have any idea where Aster is?"

The group was again reminded of his condition. Jaden looked down, "Yeah, he's…been in his yacht ever since…well…"

Realization flashed the duo's faces. Taylor sighed, "That bad, huh? How long, two weeks?"

"Can you call him?" Khartai asked, "I know he's not in a good state, but we need him here, too."

Alexis pulled out the device, "I don't know if he'll answer…but you can try." She handed it to the other girl, watching as she pressed a few buttons and waited.

…

* * *

*Yacht*

Aster hadn't been doing much. But memories of him and Angelica together kept playing in his head. Was there any way to prevent her from leaving? Was there any other way she could've stayed? The first few days he thought this over and over, but then…he just accepted that there was no way to bring her back. The boy hadn't slept much, either, keeping himself awake at night, missing the sight of her right beside him. And dreams and nightmares would taunt him half of the time he _did_ sleep.

Right now, he was in his bedroom, laying on the bed with an arm covering his eyes. His missed her a lot, and it hurt thinking she'd never come back.

'Why did this have to happen? Why?'

He turned to his side.

'What did she do? What did she do to deserve this?'

He turned again.

'It wasn't her fault. She didn't have to leave…!'

He punched the pillow.

'Dammit…!"

…

…

"Hah…I'm such a mess…" he said out loud, "I really have to pull myself together…"

"But…then what? I can't forget about her…"

"Angelica…I love you…I _need_ you…"

…

…

*RING*

He turned to his phone, letting out a sigh. Knowing the others, it was probably them checking up on him. He can't be too mad, of course. But it was starting to become annoying, since this is the fifth time they called. He could just not answer again, but he decided against that for some reason.

He picked up the phone and answered, "Hey, I told you guys I'm—!"

" _Woah, someone sounds like they haven't slept. Have you even been taking care of yourself properly? You sound like a train wreck._ "

His eyes widened. He recognized that voice. But…how? How was she alive? He clearly remembers watching her and Taylor evaporate, so how was she able to be here?

"Khartai…?"

" _Yup, it's me._ _Been a while._ "

"Wait, but how are you—!"

" _Long story. Look, I need you to get yourself together and get out of that yacht. We need you to see something._ "

"...And what would that 'something' be?"

" _Sorry, secret for now. That's why I said to hurry up. I'm waiting outside._ "

"Would it explain how the hell you're able to talk to me right now when you should be dead?"

" _Precisely. Now come on, we don't have all day. Oh and did I mention this is special? Trust me, you wouldn't wanna miss it._ "

"...Fine."

He hung up, getting off his bed. He changed quickly and walked out. As he came out, he was thinking to himself how he'd been able to stay in there for two weeks straight. Man, that felt like months.

Aster saw Khartai, tapping her foot lightly on the wood floor of the dock. She was back to being human, too. All the ritual markings were gone, and she no longer had that black jewel. It was a good thing, he didn't want to see those scars all the time.

As the girl looked his way, she was a bit shocked. She walked over without saying anything and started fixing his hair, as if it was normal to do so. Aster was weirded out. For a good reason, too. The first thing she does when having seen him for the first time since she came back was touching his hair. That was weird.

"...What are you doing?"

"You look like hell, Aster. Believe me that's something you _don't_ wanna be compared to. You can't go wandering around like this."

"...Thanks…?"

When she was done, they looked at each other a little awkwardly. Aster felt the need to say something, "Hey, sorry about…"

Khartai knew what he was hinting at, so she shrugged, "I'll get over it sooner or later. It's fine. I'm not mad about you punching me, either, I deserved it."

"You still psychotic?"

She playfully pushed him, "You say that like I killed someone!"

"You _almost_ did."

"Yeah, but I was crazy, okay? I scare myself thinking about that. To be fair, my mental health was never the greatest, so there's a chance I may have a disorder or something, but I don't know."

"That's hard…"

She looked at the boy with hope in her eyes, "Can we be friends, at least?"

Aster didn't see any reason to say no, since he overheard the apologies, "Yeah, sure."

Khartai smiled, "Thanks a lot." She looked back, "Now then, let's get going. We still need to show you something, remember?"

"We?" Aster asked, but then he put the pieces together, "Did Taylor come back, too?!"

The other nodded, "He's still got a little of that bad boy persona, but other than that he's more…mature, I guess."

They began talking more as they made their way back. It was nice to start over. After everything, they'd started a nice friendship. Sure, Khartai would've like more, but this was okay for her. As long as Aster was happy.

* * *

*Outside Slifer Red Dorms*

Once they had arrived, the group's eyes lit up. The silver haired boy was looking great, not like an emotional mess like they thought. Sure, he looked a bit tired, but that would shake off soon.

"Aster!" Jaden exclaimed happily, running up to him along with the rest, "We were worried about you, man! Are you okay?"

Aster couldn't help but smile, "I'm alright. Khartai managed to get me out because of a 'surprise'. Do you know about it?"

Jesse shook his head, "We're as clueless as you are." He turned to Taylor, "So? What's it about?"

Taylor stayed quiet for a moment, but two students walking by caught his attention, "Over there, listen."

They paid attention to the conversation.

"Dude, didn't you hear? Someone dressed up in a robe or cloak and walked up the stage in the announcement room like nothing. They got the attention of pretty much everyone on the island, and they're just standing there waiting for something."

"Your kidding me! Have the teachers done anything?"

"Crowler told the person to get down, but he stopped out of nowhere and stood by. And I don't know if Chancellor Sheppard has tried or not."

"The hell? What's that guy thinking? Does anyone know who it is?"

"No. No one knows."

"Boy or girl?"

"Nobody knows that, either."

"Are they even part of this academy? If they're not then this is gonna be bad."

"Should we head over?"

"What do you think? Let's go before they leave!"

With that the students bolted.

"Someone's dressed up so no one can identify them, and they're waiting for something in the announcement room?" Bastion thought out loud, "Who could it be…?"

Jaden felt anxious. His caution had increased more, "We have to find out who it is. If it's not someone pulling a prank, then who knows what might happen?"

"Let's book it then!" Taylor shouted, but there was a bit of excitement in his voice, as if he knew what was going on.

Even so, everyone agreed with Jaden, and started sprinting towards the announcement room. Many things could occur. It could be a stunt, it could be a maniac, it could be literally _anything_ else.

 _Anything_ else…

…but it was none of these.

It was something they sure hadn't thought of.

* * *

*Announcement Room*

Immediately, the group was greeted with a bustling crowd of students, trying to see who the person was. Some older boys were pissed off for some reason, yelling threats and telling them to get out. The person just stood still, calmly waiting there. The cloak they had on reached to their ankles, and it covered their eyes. They wore a white bandana that covered their mouth. Basically, it was impossible to see who it was from any angle, let alone the gender.

As the gang pushed their way to the front, the strange person noticed them, tensing up. They'd quickly calmed down, though, and began pulling something out. It was a headset. But it was a headset you'd use in a play, with a small microphone so their voice could be heard. They took their time putting it on, careful not to take the hood off and reveal themselves. People were whispering about the weird actions.

Jaden looked to his side, seeing Yubel there, 'Can you see who it is?'

The spirit shook her head, ||It's impossible. Something is blocking my power, and I can't seem to learn anything about them. But…if I remember, the only other person who was able to do that was…||

'Hold on, you really think it's—!'

||I don't know, Jaden. But we can't jump to conclusions. It's too soon to say.||

'Yeah…you're right.'

Jesse saw the rapid expression changes on his friend's face, as well as Yubel floating there, "You okay? Did Yubel say somethin'?"

The brunette shook his head, "It's nothing. She wasn't able to find out who it was."

"Must be special, then."

The sound of fingers snapping brought their attention back to the stranger, as they had finished preparing. Everyone was waiting for them to speak, so they could find out who it was already and get them down. They needed a motive, a strong one to have the courage to walk up and publicly draw attention. Either crazy, plain stupid, or both. The problem was…

The person didn't speak…

…

They started _singing_ …

…

/ _Heartbeats fast_ /

/ _Colors and promises_ /

/ _How to be brave_ /

/ _How can I love when I'm afraid…_ /

/ _…to fall_ /

/ _But watching you stand alone_ /

/ _All of my doubt_ …/

/ _…suddenly goes away somehow_ /

…

One thing was for certain…

Their voice was _beautiful_.

It was a sweet, soft, and amazing voice. One that soothed the coldest of hearts. One that brought everything alive. Who in the world did it belong to...?

…

/ _One step closer_ /

/ _I have died everyday waiting for you_ /

/ _Darling don't be afraid…_ /

/ _…I have loved you for a thousand years_ /

/ _I love you for a thousand more_ /

…

Atticus nodded, "This is obviously dedicated to someone…a loved one."

"They went through the trouble of being this dramatic for someone they love?" Chazz confirmed, "Now that's commitment."

"Haven't seen one of these before," Jim smiled, "It's a pretty thing to watch."

…

/ _Time stands still_ /

/ _Beauty in all she is_ /

/ _I will be brave_ /

/ _I will not let anything, take away…_ /

/ _…What's standing in front of me_ /

/ _Every breath, every hour has come to this_ /

…

"They have such a pretty voice, too…" Alexis sighed happily, "It's great."

"I must admit, hearing them sing about love is intriguing," Bastion agreed, "just shows how much they care for their significant other…"

"I'm still wondering…" Axel mumbled, "Why go through the trouble of hiding themselves? What are they achieving?"

Jesse hummed, "That's true. Takes time to do that. And if they're tryin' to send a message, it ain't right to hide their identity. That'll just ruin the purpose."

"Maybe for more drama?" Syrus suggested, "It does add the mysterious effect."

"Maybe…" Jaden muttered, "But I wouldn't count on it..."

…

/ _One step closer_ /

/ _I have died everyday waiting for you_ /

/ _Darling don't be afraid…_ /

/ _…I have loved you for a thousand years_ /

/ _I'll love you for a thousand more_ /

/ _And all along I believed, I would find you_ /

/ _Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you…_ /

/ _…For a thousand years_ /

/ _I'll love you for a thousand more_ /

…

The brunette had noticed Aster was the silent one out of all of them. He hadn't said anything since the person started singing. In fact, looking at his face, it was one disbelief. He couldn't take his eyes off the dressed individual. Something was off. He knew something the others didn't. This was nerve wracking.

"Aster? What are you thinking?"

The boy didn't answer. He kept staring. But out came a whisper, one of shock.

"Is…is it…?"

…

/ _One step closer_ /

/ _One step closer_ /

…

/ _I have died everyday waiting for you_ /

/ _Darling don't be afraid…_ /

/… _I have loved you for a thousand years_ /

/ _I'll love you for a thousand more_ /

…

"Jaden…I think…!"

"You think what, man?"

"I think…it's _her_ …!"

"Her…? By her…you can't mean—!"

"It's _exactly_ what I mean…!"

…

/ _And all along I believed, I would find_ /

/ _Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you…_ /

/ _…For a thousand years_ /

/ _I'll love you for a thousand more_ /

…

As the student was finishing the song, they quietly took the headset off and placed it beside them. Everyone in the room began applauding. They couldn't deny that the person who sang that song had such a talented singing voice. It would be rude not to clap. Some of the tension was lifted thanks to it. After the applause, it began settling in as to what _precisely_ had been going on.

"Hey! Who are you?!"

"You're so good at singing! We just wanna know who it is!"

"You gonna show yourself now?!"

The person didn't move from their spot. All they did was snap their fingers once again…and the light turned off.

"I-I can't see a thing!"

"That dumbass must have turned them off!"

"Let's get out of here, I'm scared!"

People started shoving each other out of the room in panic and frustration, quickly getting out and shutting the door once they thought everyone was out. But…the ones who stayed were the group themselves. Khartai and Taylor insisted that they didn't go. It had to be for a good reason.

Jaden faintly heard the sound of footsteps going further away from the door. The other students were leaving, some were in quite a hurry, too.

Chazz was pretty annoyed by the lack of communication the unknown person was having, "Listen here, if you don't get rid of that thing and show us who you are I'm gonna go and rip it right off!"

"Cool your jets," Axel told him, "you won't solve anything by threatening them."

Aster's eyes showed hope. But with that hope came fear. Fear that the moment they took off the cloak, that hope would be shattered instantly. Fear that reality would mercilessly hit him once again. He didn't want to go through that again. It hurt him too much.

But…he had to confirm it. He had to see with his own eyes if this person was who he thought it was!

The boy started walking up the stage, earning concerned glances from everyone else. Well, everyone except Khartai and Taylor. They just kept smiling.

"Whad'ya think you're doin', Aster?!" Jesse exclaimed, beginning to follow him, "For all we know, they could be dangerous!"

"That hurt my feelings!" Taylor gasped dramatically and crossed his arms, faking his tone of voice, "You think we wanted to bring you guys to someone _dangerous_? Cut us some slack, would you?!"

||Jesse, calm down,|| Yubel said, in order to keep the duelist from making anymore assumptions, ||Aster will be fine. If he knew this was a trap, he wouldn't easily fall for it.||

The emerald eyed boy backed up, "I guess so…"

"Don't worry, he knows what he's doing!" Jaden put a hand on his shoulder for reassurance, "I've known him enough to know he's not gonna let himself fall into any easy trick."

Jesse nodded, as they once again anticipated for the person to reveal themselves.

Aster was not too far away from them, now. He was taking slow steps. But it wasn't for caution, it was for extra time to let his brain and heart decide what he wanted to do. He was still a bit afraid, but the hope residing in him won. First, he put his hands behind their head, undoing the bandana that was tied. He felt soft and silky hair. The whole time, the stranger had stayed completely still. They hadn't tried pushing him, they didn't even bother trying to stop him. They let him do it.

Aster saw them. He recognized them. Those gorgeous aquamarine eyes that sparkled with happiness, staring right into his own. They recognized him, too. There was no doubt about it. He was completely sure of it now. So with one swift movement, he took off the cloak and let it fall to the floor.

…

A miracle…fate…luck… _destiny_ …it didn't matter what people would want to call it. It didn't matter if others were to say that it was impossible. It didn't matter if anyone else thought of it as a mere dream. What was important was that it had no doubt taken place right there, the memory forever dormant in the people in the room.

The person with that outstanding voice that could make flowers bloom. The same person who had given them all a new friend. The same person who had shown Aster Phoenix _love_ …

…

 _Angelica_.

…

* * *

…

They say that love can only grow stronger with hardship. Without hardship, love won't fully grow into the beautiful flower that it's capable of becoming.

And if this isn't an example…then…

There's nothing else to say about it.

Words could _not_ describe how much joy Aster felt at that moment. Seeing the girl he adored and _cherished_ right here, when he thought she'd never return…it filled him with so much happiness, he didn't know what to say. The others in the room were so relieved to see her alive. Khartai and Taylor exchanged glances, a look of satisfaction on their faces.

Angelica smiled. That soft smile Aster loved seeing. She brushed some hair off his face, not taking her eyes off his own. She'd known what he had felt the past two weeks, and it made her feel bad. He had been in his yacht the whole time, torturing himself with his own thoughts. It must have been hard.

"Aster…" Angelica softly said, "Hey…it's alright…I made it back…"

"Angelica…!" Tears of pure joy emerged, "I…I thought you'd n-never come back…! I thought you were…!"

"...Me, too. But…I'm right here…and I promise you…I'm never leaving again…"

"Angelica!" Aster pulled her into a strong hug, "I-I won't _ever_ let you leave again! I'm never letting you go! I-I…I love you Angelica! More than you could ever know!"

Angelica returned the hug, she couldn't help but tear up a little as well, "I love you, too, Aster…from the bottom of my heart…"

The sight brought a smile on everyone's face. The couple was back together again, and they were very happy. Just seeing their feelings being shown…was calming, it felt almost like a fairytale ending. It felt like a fantasy happily ever after, but…all in all it happened. A happy ending.

…

As the two pulled away slightly from the hug, Aster noticed an odd detail. He hadn't noticed earlier because of his overwhelming emotions, and he was still barely able to see it, but it stood out to him all of a sudden, "Angelica…your left eye. It's…normal."

Now that they looked at it, there was no longer a demon eye…it was the same as her right. And as they could recall…once Korísatanikí had solidified, the eye was gone, too. She had gotten rid of her eyepatch a long time ago, even before they entered that crazy dimension.

"Wait…" Jaden thought out loud, "Angelica and Korísatanikí are bound, right? One can't live without the other… _literally_. And that eye only disappeared _because_ the demon had her own body. So then…that means—!"

Clapping was heard. A slow clap from one person. They looked around, none of _them_ were the ones doing it. Where was it coming from? Who else was in the room?

They heard a voice afterward. Just how they remembered it, too…

" **Looks like I've been caught! Haha, too bad. I kinda wanted to mess around with some of you! Like a grand entrance! Can't have everything though, can we?"**

It was that same voice. One that mirrored Angelica's, but only more distorted. Before it spawned fear on them all, but…it's not the case this time. This time…they weren't afraid…they were quite relieved, to be honest. Weird and unbelievable, but true.

Angelica giggled, "You sure took your time getting here."

" **I didn't want to ruin your reunion! It was** _ **very**_ **touchy! Maybe a little too much for my taste…"**

"What was that?"

" **Oh, nothing~"**

"Come on, stop hiding and get out already!"

" **Well** _ **someone's**_ **a bit bossy, hm? Fine, fine, here I go!"**

There was this one corner that didn't have light, and out that darkness came a fog of shadows. As they went away, a figure started walking towards them. And, once they had been fully visible, it confirmed what everyone had thought. Yup, it was definitely her…

Korísatanikí.

Alive and well.

Her demon wings, horns, and tail weren't there anymore. And her eyes didn't have that demon look to them, but they were still a blood red color. She wore the same outfit as Angelica, the Ra Yellow uniform. Except for teal stockings, she wore grey ones, and her hair was a bit messy, still. And her hair was a _slightly_ darker shade than Angelica's, but it didn't contrast _too_ much. You'd think when seeing them for the first time they were long lost twin sisters…

Korísatanikí examined herself, and the clothes she wore, **"So this is the stuff the girls wear, huh? I gotta say, your academy has a horrible sense of decency."**

Aster rolled his eyes, "You're one to talk."

The other shrugged, **"I'll manage. I've had to wear things more ridiculous than** _ **this**_ **thanks to your girlfriend over there."**

"Don't say that like it's _my_ fault!" Angelica exclaimed, "Give me a break, I was raised weird in that life! My imagination was crazier than all the ideas of _torture_ you've had!"

" **Holy shit, you went there!"**

"I…don't think you'd want to compare your imagination with _torture_ …" Jaden nervously laughed.

Korísatanikí chuckled, running to Khartai and Taylor, **"You guys are cool. Sorry about the whole 'manipulation' thing!"**

"Whatever…" the boy sighed, "I'm still kinda pissed, but at least you aren't gonna throw us under the bus again, right?"

" **You have my word."**

"...Alright," Khartai walked up and punched her shoulder pretty hard, "just don't expect me to forget about it. I don't know about you, but getting all those markings wasn't _fun_."

" **I'm sure it wasn't. I was there hearing you scream and watching you, after all."**

"...You're still a psychotic bitch to me," Khartai smirked, "Not my place to say that, but you are."

Korísatanikí smirked as well, **"Right back at you."**

The group watching from afar sweat-dropped. Syrus leaned closer to Chazz a little to whisper, "So…are they fighting? Or…?"

"Don't look at me," Chazz shook his head, "I don't know what's going on. They're two crazies who relate, I guess."

Angelica laughed again as the two held up their conversation, Taylor occasionally pitching in against Korísatanikí. She looked back at Aster, "Well…we did it. We made it. This is what I've always wanted! For everyone to be able to be forgiven and live!"

"It's thanks to you, Angelica," Aster stroked her cheek, "you had fought through it…you even fought yourself. Not everyone can do that…"

"It wasn't just me!" She retorted, "Everyone helped! None of us could have done this alone! _I_ couldn't have done it alone! I have you and everyone else to thank!"

They leaned in closer, smiles on their faces, "You don't have any idea how grateful I am for you to be here, Angelica. Those two weeks have been horrible…thinking of you…I just…"

"It's okay. It's okay that you felt that way. I wanted to come to you so bad, but I couldn't, and it hurt me knowing I wouldn't be able to go back. So…being here…I'm so happy…!"

Their lips met as they kissed. Again, gentle yet full of emotion. By now, the girls had stopped their argument and stayed quiet, seeing them share this moment. Korísatanikí smiled a little. And although Khartai was a bit pained to watch it, she smiled nonetheless. They were happy. That's all that mattered.

When they parted, heat crept up their faces as they realized that they were being watched…again…

Taylor took this opportunity to annoy the magenta haired girl, "So…you still _jealous_ ~?"

She grabbed him by the shirt in retaliation, staring right into his eyes, "Your lucky I don't hate you, cause I would've sent your ass to the hospital by now. But don't you think you can get away with pissing me off, understand?"

"Y-Yeah! Okay, I got it!"

She let him go, a sigh of relief coming from the boy as he fixed his shirt, 'Man, she's tough…now I see why all those boys were at her mercy.'

" **If you're hoping to get a** _ **real**_ **girlfriend, Taylor, drop that 'Imma annoy the hell out of everyone!' attitude. Seriously, you'll be a lost cause."**

"When did you become some damn romance expert?!"

" **Please, I'm no such thing. Never will be. Just giving you something so you'll stop being a pain in the ass."**

"You wanna go?! Let's go! Right now, come on!"

Khartai pinched the bridge of her nose, "You've got to be kidding me. You really think you stand a chance against _her_?"

Taylor easily gave up, putting his arms down with a disappointed look, "Uh…good point."

Korísatanikí found it surprisingly fun to mess around with him, given how he resorts to violence almost every time something sets him off. Though, she found interest in talking to someone else for a while, while Khartai and Taylor were talking to each other.

Everyone was leaving anyway, most of the group around Aster and Angelica, asking questions and whatnot. They knew it would be best not to stay in that room for too long. Someone was bound to go in, most likely one of the teachers. If that happened…they'd have a lot more explaining to do. And…well they weren't in the mood for that.

As they were walking, she found Yubel floating a little behind. Just the person she was looking for.

" **So…"** she started, **"How was everyone while we were away?"**

||As you'd expect,|| Yubel replied, ||they were upset. Aster refused to leave his yacht, their friend was presumably dead. They were sort of stuck. They decided that waiting was the best they could do for the boy. He needed time to himself, after all.||

" **They're smart."**

||After almost three years of nothing but threats to the world, they'd become more aware.||

" **...I see."**

||...By the way, did you forget?||

" **Hm?"**

||I wanted to know more about yourself, and your deck. I never knew cards like yours existed. Didn't I ask if you could tell me once we came back? And you're here, so…||

" **Hah…I mean, I don't see why not,"** Korísatanikí smiled, **"Only if you tell me more about** _ **yourself**_ **."**

||Deal.|| The spirit smiled back.

So they began talking more and more, learning about each other as they spoke about many things that they surprisingly have a same opinion on. It was cool how they could relate to a lot of things.

Angelica glanced back for a second, seeing the two in the middle of their conversation, 'I knew they'd hit it off.'

* * *

*Slifer Red Dorms*

The sky had shades of red and orange, the sun was setting. Not only did the group see this did they realize they were a little tired. Yeah they hadn't done much, but all the rapid set of emotions they felt made them mentally tired, even when their bodies didn't feel too much of it. So Jaden was the first to be 'dropped off'. Scratch that, Jaden _and_ Jesse. The boy had wanted to stay the night over again. No questions were asked, since this was normal to see. Jesse also couldn't help but notice the slight shade of pink on Jaden's cheeks every time he asked to stay. Huh…

"Guess we're off!" Jesse waved, "See y'all in the morning! Aster, go get some rest!"

"Again, it's great to have you back, Angelica! Actually, to have _both_ of you back!" He was referring to Aster as well. He got the hint, nodding in agreement.

"Thank you, Jaden! See you tomorrow!" Angelica waved back, cheerfully smiling as the two went inside. She turned to her boyfriend, "When do you think they'll figure it out? How long has it been with them being so oblivious?!"

"...Who knows?" Aster chuckled, "As far as I can tell, they're too stubborn to admit it."

" **Yubel is gonna lecture her 'prince' soon enough,"** Korísatanikí grinned at the thought, **"Hope he'll survive."**

"Yikes…"

* * *

*Yacht*

Once they got to the fork pathway, they went their separate ways, going into their own dorms. They could worry about giving Chancellor Sheppard the details tomorrow. That wasn't necessary right now. They _would_ have to keep any student 'detectives' at bay, since people would probably find the sudden reappearance of Khartai and Taylor suspicious if they caught them. If the truth was spread…they wouldn't have the best reputation.

They were people who wanted to simply dig up dirt. Or…as Taylor put it, "Nosy-ass bitches who can't keep their annoying fucking mouths shut." Yeah…something about people trying to uncover secrets like that angered him _greatly_.

Korísatanikí claimed she wasn't able to enter the Underworld as she pleased anymore, so that meant she had to find a room to crash in. It so happened that there was one more room left. The academy strangely had more Ra Yellow students this year than before, probably because so many had ranked up from Slifer. To be real, not many people like the red dorms anyway. Jaden was a special one who thought of it as his home.

Strangely, but _not_ at the same time, Aster insisted on Angelica staying with him in his yacht tonight. Of course, she had no reason to decline…but they could've stayed in her room, couldn't they? A part of her mind argued it was his possessive nature. That could easily be the case. So, without much more protest, she packed another pair of clothes and headed of with him.

As they went in his room, Angelica plopped herself onto the bed, examining the place. She noted how disorganized things were. There were random papers scattered across the small desk, and some dropped to the floor. On impulse, she picked them up and neatly stacked them into one pile. The bedsheets and pillows were all over the place, too. Seeing this now…Aster was a lost cause in here for those weeks.

"Yeah, uh…sorry about the mess," Aster sheepishly smiled, rubbing the back of his neck, "I kinda left in a hurry and didn't think about cleaning it up." As if _that_ wasn't obvious.

"It's okay," the girl said, "I…could sort of figure out why the room is like this to begin with…" She pulled Aster towards her, intertwining their fingers. She leaned up and kissed him passionately, as to interrupt anything he was going to say before. She could feel his protective nature.

When they pulled away, Aster felt his heart beating against his chest, his face flushed. Angelica was experiencing the same feeling. What started out as small innocent kisses melted into a make-out session, their need for one another increasing with every touch. They crawled onto the bed, hands roaming around. When they stopped to take a breath, Aster saw the girl panting, blushing with lustful eyes. This had set something off in him. He wanted more. He wanted more of _her_. Their yearning was too strong to ignore.

…Tonight would be one to remember.

* * *

/ _When you say you love me_ /

/ _Know I love you more_ /

/ _And when you say you need me_ /

/ _Know I need you more_ /

— "Adore You" by Miley Cyrus

* * *

*Author's Note*

Whaaaaaaat? Posted in just a week(sorta)? Whaaaaaa?

Yes I didn't go into hibernation if that's what you're wondering(And yes I know hibernation is usually meant towards sleeping during winter. Even though it's summer…I'm not stupid I swear).

How about that? We got a happy ending after all! Yay!

Angelica: She's not too excited trust me. She loves the more depressing and despair-inducing things.

…You didn't have to expose me. But whatevs. I'M ON TEAM DESPAIR FIGHT ME!

…Putting that aside, that's it for this chapter! Yeah…there's gonna be lemon in the next . I'm probably going to hell, but I already knew that. I mean, it's worth it. Well I'll see you all next chapter!

Byyyeeee!


	20. Chapter 19(END)

**A Gift and a Curse**

 **Chapter 19(END)**

…Here we are. Damn I checked when I started this story and put it up…that was last October. Time flies as they say, and I sound corny as hell saying that…

Angelica: It's so strange but amazing at the same time! It's been such a wild ride!

A _very_ wild ride.

I don't know anything, except Angelica Rose, Korísatanikí, Khartai and Taylor.

"..." Talking

'...' Thoughts

||...|| Spirit Talking

|...| Flashback

/ _Italics_ / Song

 **WARNING!: LEMON AHEAD! DON'T LIKE DON'T READ! I mean this** _ **is**_ **rated M so stuff like this should be expected as well BUT STILL. Oh and…if your parents don't want you looking at this stuff…DON'T TELL THEM AND DON'T BLAME ME IF THEY FIND OUT! We good? We good.**

I know some of you have been waiting for the lemon, and you've got it! This _is_ my first time writing a _full_ one so…I'm sorry if it's bad in any way X(

Chapter 19 ;)

* * *

/ _What are you waiting for?_ /

/ _Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do_ /

/ _Love me like you do, lo-lo-love me like you do_ /

/ _Touch me like you do, to-to-touch me like you do_ /

/ _What are you waiting for?_ /

— "Love Me Like You Do" by Ellie Goulding

* * *

*Yacht*

Tonight, Aster has been _very_ needy, like more than usual. He kept wanting more and more, unable to hold himself back. It was something new, but then again it wasn't unpleasant. Angelica had decided it was due to the fact of her disappearance, and now he had some more of a clingy nature. She wasn't complaining, though. Right now, all that was on their minds were each other. Their heavy breaths were intoxicating, leading them to go further. It had never gotten past making out and slipping their hands underneath their clothing, or…what had happened that day they made cookies. But this time, they wanted to go all the way.

Words didn't need to explain that.

Aster had disposed of her coat and shirt, kissing and sucking at her neck and collarbone, leaving very noticeable marks, enjoying the small mewls and gasps coming from the girl. Angelica had taken the opportunity to remove his suit shirt as well, throwing it off to the side and not caring where it landed. She took a minute and ran her fingers along his chest down to his stomach. She had expected the boy to be fit, of course. He was great at many different sports, so it would be obvious he had worked out plenty of times. But… _wow_.

Aster met her gaze and smirked. He knew what she was doing, it wasn't exactly hidden. He teasingly pulled down Angelica's skirt, leaving marks on her thighs as well.

"A-Aster…!" She breathlessly moaned, lightly tugging on his silver hair. For it being her first time, the sensation wasn't like anything she could ever _dream_ of.

Once the skirt was off, Aster stopped for a second, adoringly looking at her body. The curtains on his window left a small space for moonlight to crawl in, as it made Angelica's porcelain skin glow under the night. Her eyes glimmering, like the billions of stars in the sky, and her hair shone under the dim but pretty light. It made her look…like a goddess. And those love marks…made her _his_ goddess, and _his_ alone.

"... _Beautiful_."

Angelica looked even more flustered at the comment. She smiled, making her entire appearance even more gorgeous. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down for another kiss. Aster made work into removing her bra. Once it was off, he began massaging and licking her chest.

"Ahh~" Angelica's breathing became uneven with the ever-growing passion, Aster began panting a bit more as well.

He leaned up to her ear, "...Have I ever told you that you're adorable?" He whispered huskily, licking her earlobe, chuckling at the whine he got in response.

"Gh…!" Angelica gasped when she felt him rubbing her crotch through her panties. He felt how wet it was. Seeing her like this, writhing underneath him with every touch…it was turning him on. Aster had settled in his mind on prolonging the teasing a little. Cruel maybe, but he wanted to keep hearing Angelica's sweet noises of pleasure. He trailed kisses down her neck to her chest and to her thighs, tracing his fingers up and down her back. This was making her go insane, her body was almost screaming for more. And the needy but innocent look on her face just added to the effect.

Angelica was no expert, but she had caught on with the boy's playing. Being dominant and having control was in his nature, after all. She grinded her hips against his forcefully, making the other groan with the heat that flared up his abdomen. He smirked, "...Someone's a little impatient."

This led to Angelica pulling him down into another kiss, tongues quickly meeting as she grinded against him again, making them moan in each other's mouths. Without warning, she licked and sucked on the nape of his neck, leaving her own marks on him. Angelica spoke up, "P-Please Aster…! I…need you…!"

Aster just couldn't hold it in anymore, hearing her beg sent him over the edge. He quickly started removing his belt and pants, his erection too painful under those clothes. Once it was off, the girl's gaze fell on his member. It wasn't too much of a surprise, she had gotten a look before. Looking up at him for consent, she made her way towards it, proceeding to put it in her mouth and suck. Her tongue running along the tip to the base, before enveloping it in the warmth of her mouth.

"N-Ngh…I haven't felt this…in a while- Ah~!" He cut himself off with a moan when Angelica put his member deeper in her mouth, lightly grazing her teeth along it. She took note of how his breathing had become increasingly ragged, and the noises he made had gotten louder. He was close.

"A-Angelica~! Haah…I-I'm gonna- AHH~!" Said girl deep-throated him, causing Aster to reach his climax before he could finish, releasing inside Angelica's mouth. She didn't show any sign of discomfort, only gagging once before swallowing his seed. She looked up at his flushed and panting face with innocent eyes, a line of semen coming from her mouth.

"You still taste nice, Aster~" She giggled like a child, but her sultry tone of voice weighed that out. How is it that she can play it off like a ten year old and yet act seductive at the same time? Also, when had she been so good at this? He questioned it the first time, and now the curiosity came back. He could barely think, but it still intrigued him.

"How'd you…learn to…you know…" He asked in between breaths. Angelica didn't get it for a moment, but realized what he meant.

"I- uh…had to learn to do it 'properly'...since my parents tried forcing me into… _that_ ," she looked off to the side, while Aster felt bad for bringing it up. She then turned to him, "But I promise I've never done _it_ with them! This is…my first time…" Her eyes wandered as her face became red in embarrassment. The boy smiled at how cute it was to see her get so flustered.

"Haha…well, if I'm being honest…this is my first time, too," Angelica looked back at him with a little disbelief, an unconvinced expression showing, "Hey, why are you looking at me like that? I'm serious!"

"Really? You, Aster Phoenix, have never slept with another girl yet?"

"Why is it that hard to believe? Oh I get it…" He smirked, pinning Angelica to the bed once more, "It's my charm, huh? I can't help it, though…" He slowly pulled her panties down, "I guess it just comes out naturally, you know? It's not my fault so many girls fall for me. Even so…" He gave her a soft kiss, his voice more gentle and caring, "I'm no heartbreaker…okay maybe I can be a bit harsh but you get me. I'd never just have a one-night stand with some girl I barely met. I love _you_ , Angelica, and only _you_."

Angelica warmly smiled, "I feel the same way. I love you, too, Aster. Nothing will change that…"

As they met for another passionate kiss, the heat grew again between them. When they looked at one another, Aster cupped her face gently, "Do you want to move on?"

Angelica nodded eagerly, not being able to wait for much longer. So the boy inserted one finger in, making the other's breath hitch. The feeling was certainly different. His finger moved in and out slowly, as to let her adjust.

Aster leaned up and kissed her, putting in a second finger, causing Angelica to whimper in pain. It faintly helped that her pain tolerance was significantly higher than average thanks to her…circumstances. But still, it hurt.

"It's okay…" Aster whispered reassuring words, getting her to calm down a little, as he made a scissoring motion inside her. The small moans and gasps were so arousing, he didn't know how much longer he could take it. Next he pumped his two fingers inside, trying to hit a specific spot.

"Ahh~! A-Aster!" Angelica practically screamed in pure pleasure, gripping onto the sheets tighter than before. Aster knew he had found her sweet spot, hitting it a few more times to see her reaction. She couldn't stop herself from begging once more, the fingering was driving her wild.

"Aster! P-Please…I need you! I can't wait!" She cried out, a look of helplessness spread across her face. Aster couldn't wait anymore, either. Remembering something, he reached down to his pile of clothes beside the bed, digging around. This left Angelica confused for a moment, before he went back with something in his hand. She already knew what it was.

"W-Where did you get those…?" She asked shyly. Last she checked this academy wasn't supposed to sell _condoms_. And yet the pro duelist just so happened to pull one out.

"Don't really have a clue…but I sorta have an idea…" Aster sighed, sounding pretty annoyed at that fact. Angelica stared at him for a while, before her face turned bright red once more.

'...When I get my hands on that boy…!'

"...Pervert…" The silver haired boy muttered under his breath. Truth be told -and as much as he'd hate to admit it- the 'gift' had came in handy after all. That didn't mean he would _thank_ the guy. If anything he'd just knock some sense into him…if Alexis didn't do the job first.

"Anyway…I think it's a little too early to be having a child, don't you think?" He finished with a small laugh, earning a giggle from the girl.

Getting back on track, he placed the condom on his member and got into position, spreading her legs wider, putting it right at her entrance.

"I'm gonna put it in, alright?" He asked, a small hint of desperation in his voice. Angelica nodded again, preparing for the amount of pain she would feel again.

Aster carefully inserted his erection inside, hearing her scream because of the intense feeling. He started playing with the girl's hair and kissing her neck, trying to help her relax. It took a while for Angelica to get comfortable, smiling at the one above her as a sign to keep going. Aster complied, and began moving at a slow rhythm.

That didn't last long. They both started losing themselves in lust, "F-Faster…" Angelica moaned helplessly. Never in a million years did the boy think he'd hear that come out of _her_. Ignoring the small shock, he quickened his pace, leading to louder erotic noises from the other as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Their minds were a foggy mess, and neither could think straight.

"AHN~! Oh god! Right there!" Suddenly Angelica let out a scream, panting even harder. Aster repeatedly hit that spot, making her feel like she was in heaven. Wave after wave of pleasure consumed them.

"Aster~! Aster~!" Angelica kept screaming out, sounding almost like a chant. Aster leaned to her ear and kept moaning her name as well. Soon, they were reaching their limit.

"I-I…Aster, I can't~!" Angelica exclaimed, holding onto him strongly, digging her nails into his skin. If it weren't for the amount of pleasure overwhelming them, Aster would have felt that a lot more.

"I-I'm almost there, too…!" He groaned, thrusting in harder. It was great they were by themselves in his yacht, because who knows what might have happened if someone overheard them?

"Ahh~! Haah~! Oh god, Aster~! AHHH~!" Angelica cried out, her liquids pouring down her thighs. Aster felt her insides tightened around him, getting closer and closer.

"Angelica! Angelica! I-I'm coming~! AHH ANGELICA~!" He moaned loudly, hitting his climax for the second time. He pulled out, and collapsed next to Angelica on the bed, feeling understandably tired. Both were breathing heavily as a sudden wave of sleepiness hit them. They were coming down from their high, turning to their side to face each other. They stared into one another's eyes with loving expressions, their hearts beating against their chest.

Angelica scooted closer to him, wrapping her arms around him once more, nuzzling her face into his neck. Aster returned the gesture, burying his face into her soft hair, enjoying the sweet smell of coconut.

"You don't wanna clean up?" He asked softly, chuckling when Angelica cuddled closer to him in response.

"...Tomorrow. It's late…and I'm sleepy…"

"Wow, was I that rough?"

He laughed again when she softly hit him, not having enough energy to yell. He did manage to catch something else, "...It felt…amazing…"

"Yeah…it felt great for me, too," Aster smiled, "...I love you, Angelica."

"...I love you, too…Aster…"

With that last whisper, she drifted off into her sleep, her peaceful resting face gracing her features. Aster stroked her hair for a minute or two more, before letting sleep take him as well. The moon shone on the two lovers holding onto each other. And…

It was the most blissful sleep they've had in over two weeks.

* * *

*Next morning*

 **A/N: The lemon is done!**

It was as if no time had passed at all. Morning had arrived again. The sun revealed itself once more, as the sky illuminated in reds and oranges. Birds were singing their songs, as the waves rocked against the wooden dock. A nice breeze was flowing. Sunlight shone in from the small crack in the window. It was a new day.

Aster stirred from his sleep, opening his eyes to the sight of the sleeping angel… _his_ sleeping angel. Last night's memories were passing through his mind, as he couldn't help but smile to himself. His lightly kissed the girl's forehead, not exactly trying to wake her up. She did anyway, her beautifully colored eyes sparkling as they always did, as a blush adorned her cheeks. Events of yesterday had settled in her mind, too. She sighed in content when Aster brought a hand up to her face, cupping her cheek. She leaned against it with a warm smile, "...Good morning…"

"Good morning to you, too," The boy replied, "I haven't slept like that in such a long time. It was refreshing."

"Me either," Angelica said, "Well…now that I think about it, we didn't really _need_ to sleep so…" She laughed nervously, and Aster couldn't help but laugh as well. Looking over at the rising sun, Angelica hummed to herself, "Seven in the morning…"

Aster looked at her in amusement. There was no end to what the other was capable of doing, and it was ridiculous how much abilities she had, "You can tell time just by looking at the sun?"

"Pretty cool, huh?" Angelica sat up, still having the sheets covering herself, "I started teaching myself how to do it as a kid. Overtime it just…became a new talent of mine. I never used it since I could always just see a clock or phone…but still, it's a nice trick."

You learn something new everyday, apparently.

Angelica looked down, before blushing even more, "U-Um…can we…take a bath?"

Aster smirked, "You don't have to be shy, I won't bite~" He snickered when she hit him again, "Sure we can, let's go clean up."

Angelica had gone in first, while Aster had put their clothes in the laundromat. The girl had made sure to bring another uniform pair beforehand, so she'd change into that when they were done. He found himself lost in his own thoughts, staring at the wall in the bedroom.

'...And I thought miracles like this only happened in kid's books. Angelica…is here…when I had thought for sure she'd never come back…here she is… and last night…'

"Aster!" He was brought back to earth by the same girl that was on his mind, yelling from the bathroom, "Are you coming?!"

"Yeah, I'll be there!" He called back, shaking his head and joining Angelica in the bath.

* * *

*Time Skip - Slifer Red Dorms*

" **There's our two lovebirds!"** The first person to greet the couple was Korísatanikí, sitting on the table rather than the benches, **"Finally slept good, agóri egó?"**

The boy rolled his eyes, "Wow, what gave it away?"

" **You're hair doesn't look like an old, drunk barber styled it."**

Angelica held back a laugh, as Aster gave the half demon an annoyed look, despite the shade of pink on his cheeks, "Gee, thanks a lot."

"Glad you two are doing a lot better," Jaden said, "After everything that happened, you deserve it."

They both nodded, taking their seat with Korísatanikí, Khartai and Taylor after the rest of the gang spoke their greetings, going back to different conversations.

"So when did you guys start hanging out here?" Aster asked them, earning an elbow hit from Angelica.

"Why not?" Taylor leaned against the wall, "I mean, my 'friends' are still in the infirmary thanks to _this_ fucking monster."

" **You're welcome!"**

"And," Khartai continued, "my two friends are idiots so I'd rather not spend so much time with them. You don't mind us being here, do you?"

"Don't mind at all," Angelica said kindly, "You're our friends now, so everything is fine!"

"I guess that soft trait isn't such a bad thing after all…"

Aster glanced over to someone's direction, and his annoyance started building up again. He sat up abruptly, confusing the rest, and walked up to the boy across, "Hey Atticus, mind telling me why'd you think it was a good idea slipping a certain _something_ in my pocket yesterday?"

Atticus simply looked up at him with a blank slate, trying to act innocent, "I dunno what you mean."

"Oh you know _exactly_ what I mean, pervert," Aster retorted, "First of all, you didn't even know what we were going to do. Second of all, you can't go around carrying _those_ with you."

"Uh…guys?" Jesse cautiously asked, overhearing their argument, "What're you talkin' about?"

"Nothing, Jesse," Aster sighed, "It has nothing to do with you."

"Come on, Aster," Atticus smirked, leaning over to say in a low voice, "You and I both know you didn't invite Angelica over to your yacht to simply cuddle. I bet I saved your butt there, didn't I?"

This time, Jaden and Alexis heard that as well, with the blonde smacking her brother and pulling his ear, "I can't _believe_ you did that! Why in the world would you just _assume_ they'd do _that_?! Not to mention _why_ you casually carried those things around in the first place!"

"Ow, ow! Lexi, quit it! Oww- Okay, okay, I'm sorry! Let go of my ear!"

Everyone saw what was going on, not sure whether to ask or to dismiss it, since this wasn't the first time Atticus got hurt cause of something stupid he did. Korísatanikí looked at Angelica's bright red face, snickering to herself.

' **Ohhh…I see what's going on here…'**

'Wh-What…?'

' **You two had some** _ **fun**_ **last night, didn't you~?'**

'H-Hey!'

' **Sooo~? How was it~? Is he good in bed~?'**

'S-Skotádi, seriously?! What happened last night is between me and him!'

' **So you** _ **do**_ **admit it!'**

'I-I- Skotádi!'

' **Alright, alright. I'll lay off. On another note, that boy is a damn weirdo.'**

'I've noticed…'

Jaden looked at the odd scene playing before him extremely lost. He scooted closer to Jesse, "Do you understand what's going on? Because I don't."

The other looked at him a little shocked, before nervously staring back at the group, "I…don't think I havta explain…"

Yubel shook her head disappointingly, ||...You don't get it?||

Jaden thought for about half a minute before heat crept up his face, 'Oh…'

||Yup.||

'Now I wish you hadn't taught me that, Yubel!'

||You're seventeen, Jaden. You'd have to know sooner or later.||

Based on the embarrassed look the brunette was giving, Jesse had assumed he got it, "The question is how'd he never gotten caught with 'em…"

"I don't wanna think about it…"

After Alexis was done torturing her older brother, she sat back down and crossed her arms, looking at Aster apologetically, "My brother's got a stupid way of handling things so…sorry about that."

Aster gave an exasperated sigh, "No, no, you don't need to apologize. Just hope that his mind doesn't get him into some more trouble later on."

"I feel like I'm babysitting a ten-year old."

"Actually, ten-year olds are much more painful to deal with sometimes so…consider yourself lucky."

Alexis glanced at him a little stuck on that comment, but let it pass. It was probably something else he'd have experienced with. She wasn't gonna probe on his entire life.

The event had died down, leaving them all in boredom.

"Hm…" Jaden placed his face on the palm of his hand, gazing up at the ceiling for a while. He was thinking of something they could all do together. He didn't want them to just sit here and do nothing the whole time. Suddenly, an idea struck, as he leaped out of his seat with an excited look in his eyes, "Hey guys! Why don't we have a small dueling tournament? All of us go against each other until there's one winner left!"

Everyone perked up at the thought. That sounded really fun, and they'd be able to duel each other as friends instead of enemies. Not for power, not for total control, but simply for fun. After having to duel against _demons_ , this was a nice way to have a blast.

"Interesting…" Bastion mused, "I don't see why not. I'd like to see new potential in our new friends!"

"Count me in!" Jesse exclaimed, "I'm warning y'all that I'm not holding back!"

"None of us expect you to," Aster grinned, "I'd be happy to join."

"...Whatever," Chazz smirked, "Everyone knows that The Chazz will be number one!"

"Save your breath," Alexis stood up, "As long as I'm in the tournament, you're not going to get far."

"...Ah, I'll politely decline," Atticus smiled guiltily, "I'd rather watch from afar, my dueling has been getting rusty and I don't think I'd stand a chance against anyone here…"

"Are you sure, Atticus?"

"Yeah it's fine, Alexis. I'll be cheering for you!"

Hassleberry cracked his knuckles, "Time to enter combat mode!"

Syrus gave out a small sigh, but smiled afterward, "Alright. If everyone else is at their best, I'll be giving it my all, too!"

"That's the spirit, little guy!" Jim patted his shoulder, "Just make sure you don't get put against me, 'cause I'm not losin'"

"Looks like you've done it again, Jaden…" Axel mumbled, standing up as well, "I'm entering the tournament, too."

"Awesome!" Jaden cheered, his eyes falling back at the ones who haven't said anything so far, "Are you four joining?"

Khartai and Taylor exchanges looks, wearing the same smirk and same competitive thoughts going through their minds, "We're in."

||What about you?|| Yubel floated to Korísatanikí, ||It wouldn't be much fun without you around.||

The half demon rolled her eyes, **"Might as well. Plus, I'd** _ **love**_ **to crush everyone here."**

||We'll see about that.||

Aster smiled at Angelica, "How about it? Are you gonna participate?"

"Are you kidding me? Of course I am!" Angelica beamed, "This is great! I get to duel everyone else in our own tournament!"

The silver haired boy chuckled at her antics, "Glad you're happy to join us," He gave a kiss on the cheek, "Let's see if any of us are ready for your deck."

"C'mon, let's go to the dueling arena! It's better that way!" Jaden waved his hand, signaling them all to follow him.

As they were walking, Jesse walked beside him to strike up a conversation, "I could never figure out how ya do it, Jay."

"Do what?"

"Make everyone so pumped up, get 'em all excited in a second! It's amazin', really! It's just impossible to hate that about you, to hate _anythin'_ about you!"

Jaden felt his heart skip a beat at the comment, feeling butterflies in his stomach, "W-Well…I'm not too sure about that…I'm not _that_ great, Jess."

"Don't bring yourself down like that!" Jesse headlocked him playfully, "I'm positive everyone else thinks the same thing! You're practically the heart of the group!"

"I-I…" The brunette's cheeks turned a bright shade of red, looking the other way in embarrassment, "Thanks, Jesse, that means a lot." He turned back with a large smile, one that made the emerald eyed boy feel warm inside. Regardless, he didn't let go of the headlock, as they walked like that the rest of the way.

The four who had been watching them were all thinking the same thing. Those two were _bound_ to be together.

" **I swear to god if they don't hook up something's wrong with this world."** Korísatanikí said.

||Jaden cares deeply for him,|| Yubel smiled a little, ||They both care about one another. They've gone through great lengths to save each other, if you didn't know.||

" **Don't worry, I know everything about that."**

"I've been suspecting it ever since they started hanging out," Aster admitted, "Sure they're best friends, but I always thought they may have felt something more than that. And now that this month's incident is over, my suspicion has been confirmed."

"It's a wonder how they've managed to keep their emotions hidden for so long," Angelica wondered, "That or they haven't even realized they have feelings for each other."

"I guess we'll see how it plays out."

* * *

"Syrus!"

"AH!"

Said boy jumped, eyes wide in fear before he saw who it was, taking a few breaths to calm down, "A-Alexis! Don't scare me like that!"

"How else was I supposed to get your attention? You were in a whole other universe."

"Really…?"

Alexis sighed, "You just proved my point. So, who's lover boy got his eye on this time?"

"I- What?!"

"You're not exactly the best at hiding it. I found out from the weird way you've been acting and the signs you've been giving that someone's on your mind."

"Since when have I been giving off _signs_?!"

"Since about…a month and a half ago."

Syrus covered his red face with his hands, whining in embarrassment, "Why me…"

Alexis felt kinda bad for bringing it up, seeing as how the smaller one had gotten easily flustered, "You don't have to tell me, I just wanted to make sure you actually had someone special."

With that she walked back with her brother. Syrus let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, trying to steady his rapidly beating heart. And as if on cue, Chazz ruffled his hair, "Hey, four-eyes! You look like a tomato right now, haven't you noticed? Was it something Alexis said?!"

"N-No, no it wasn't, I swear!"

"Just messing with you," Chazz lightly punched him on the shoulder, "Man, you're such a softie."

"Th-Thanks, I guess…"

"Chazz, stop toying with Syrus! You guys get back here!"

"Fine, we're coming, Bastion! Stop being so demanding!" The taller one yelled back, sighing in frustration. He patted Syrus on the shoulder before walking ahead, "I don't wanna hear anymore complaints from that brainiac, so we should head over."

"Y-Yeah!" Stumbling a little at the beginning, Syrus caught up with the rest, forgetting the awkward moment that just happened.

* * *

*Duel Arena*

"Alright, we're here!" Jaden exclaimed happily, jumping onto the arena and getting everyone's attention, "Now then, I've got a few papers with your names on it! I'll pick two at random and those two will duel!"

"So that's what the box is for…" Angelica blinked, staring at the small box in the boy's hands.

"Who's gonna be in our first match?!" Jaden dug his hand into the box, roaming around with his eyes closed, until he picked one and pulled it out, "First person…Khartai!"

"Oh," Said girl was taken by surprise a bit, "Didn't expect to be first."

"And her opponent…" Jaden reached his hand in the box once more, bringing out another piece of paper and beaming at the name written on it, "Our first match is Khartai versus Angelica!"

The two girls looked at each other, grinning before walking onto the arena with their duel disks and decks. Khartai put a hand on her hip, "What a coincidence, me and you again."

"I'm looking forward to your real deck!" Angelica smiled, putting her disk in front of her to show she was ready.

"You won't be disappointed," Khartai mirrored her actions, building up her confidence. They knew they wouldn't be holding back, so this duel would be even better than their last one, also because it's under much better conditions.

"You got this, Angelica!" Aster cheered.

"Don't you lose on the first round!" Taylor called out, earning an angry look from the magenta haired girl.

"First round of the tournament!" Jaden announced, "Let's…begin!"

"DUEL!"

…

With that, the dueling tournament had begun. The whole idea was to have fun, and that's exactly what they did. They didn't worry about darkness, they didn't worry about getting seriously hurt. After that whole problem, they deserved to laugh and be filled with joy. Also, they had only four months left of Duel Academy before graduation. Angelica was transferred in with the second years, so she'd be at the island for one more year before being able to leave.

And after graduation…they'd all be on their own paths. Why not make memories while they still had the chance? And with four new friends, too.

Angelica had always thought her life was meaningless, only causing harm to everyone around her. But, thanks to Duel Academy, she had found so many new people she could trust. And…she had found the love of her life. With their help, even Korísatanikí had turned a new leaf. She was part of the darkness, that would never change. But that darkness would now only be used for keeping balance, for being able to fight off against darkness that was harmful to both her and Angelica. Light and dark…yin and yang…

Truly…

 _A gift and a curse._

* * *

/ _Legends never die!_ /

/ _When the world is calling you!_ /

/ _Can you them screaming out your name?!_ /

/ _Legends never die!_ /

/ _They become a part of you!_ /

/ _Every time you bleed for reaching greatness_ /

/ _Legends never die!_ /

— "Legends Never Die" ft. Against the Current

* * *

*Author's Note*

Alright if I'm being completely honest with myself…writing that lemon wasn't too bad. I don't know why. I mean, I still felt weird writing about people doing _it_ , but I guess it helps that this is anime? That's probably why. Plus Aster is just someone who'd be great with this stuff. And I just realized I sounded like a pervert…Atticus what have you done to me?

Atticus: wHaT?!

…Well, as it says, this is the last chapter for this story.

(KEYWORD 'THIS' STORY HINT HINT)

Yeah I left you guys on a loop with the Spiritshipping and Angelshipping because they ended up not being together in the end. Well…what if I told you this was gonna be a series? No Angelshipping won't have a story of their own.

But before I can do all of that I have been _dying_ to write some stuff with other ships, and not all of them are from Yu-Gi-Oh! So…who knows?

I thank all of you for taking the time to read my story, and I hope you enjoyed it, because I sure did!

Byyyeeee!


End file.
